Especially tenants who do not have space for a larger solar panel system can generate their own electricity from solar energy with a photovoltaic module on the balcony. The Berlin SolarPlus subsidy program is being expanded for this purpose, as the Senate Department for Economic Affairs announced on Wednesday. Starting Friday (Feb. 10), it will be possible to submit applications for a grant of up to 500 euros for the purchase of a so-called plug-in solar device. A total of seven million euros is available for this purpose.

Tenants with their primary residence in Berlin are eligible to apply. Applications should be submitted online on the website of IBB Business Team GmbH, which handles funding programs on behalf of the State of Berlin and Investitionsbank Berlin (IBB). The business administration points out that the plug-in solar device must not yet have been ordered or purchased when the application is submitted.

The Senate Department for Economics also advises interested parties to check whether their balcony is favorably oriented to the sun and whether the solar power device can be securely fastened. The landlord's consent is also a prerequisite. In addition, the plug-in solar device must reportedly be connected to a suitable circuit to avoid hazards.

You can find out whether your circuit is suitable either from the apartment owners or by contacting a specialist electrical company. In any case, the installation of the solar system must be carried out by competent persons. Connection and commissioning of the plug-in solar device should take place one week after registration with Stromnetz Berlin.

"Berlin wants to achieve a solar power share of 25 percent. That is why we are driving the solar turnaround forward together with the tenants in Berlin," said Economics Senator Stephan Schwarz (non-partisan) on Thursday. The promotion of balcony power plants is another step towards climate neutrality in Berlin, he added. "The electricity produced flows into one's own power circuit and thus reduces one's own energy costs."