Solar panel industry hit by pandemic and price increase in Yucatan

Despite the increase in their price, solar panels continue to be a long-term savings option.

(MÉRIDA, YUC. – AMER).- Solar panels in Yucatan continue to be sold, despite the pandemic and the rise in prices of supplies and transportation, according to the president of the Mexican Association of Renewable Energy and the Environment (AMER), Raúl Asís Monforte González.

Monforte González pointed out that the increase in the installation of solar panels has decreased between 15 and 25 percent, mainly because the payment of maritime freight has increased fivefold. 

The container crisis, that is, an unusual shortage of available space to transport products from Asia to the West, is due to the pandemic, which has caused some supplies and materials to have an increase in their prices, such is the case of solar panels, however, the product remains in demand. 

Problems with the shipping of solar panels

“We have had problems with freight, which has quintupled its prices; a container from China that could cost 1,800 or 2,000 dollars, currently costs 11,000 to 14,000 dollars; the prices are going up in an exponential way, ”he specified.

In addition to this, the rise is also due to the fact that raw materials have also increased, such as, for example, the frames of the panels are made of aluminum, which have reached a price never seen before due to the global inflation that has taken place. recorded in the last few months. 

“Despite all these issues, demand remains high, it has even increased, precisely because of this uncertainty, people want to be sure of having clean energy and save on their bills, because the economic situation is complicated in all sectors. ”, he asserted. 

Savings by using solar panels

Monforte González pointed out that the demand for solar panels, despite its increase, continues to be profitable, since the electricity bill would drop to a minimum, paying up to 50 pesos per two months, according to what is invested. 

In the same way, there is an environmental benefit because by consuming energy that is generated in the place where you live in a renewable and clean way, it prevents a central generator, in this case CFE, from creating the same amount that is consumed by the burning of fossil fuel with the corresponding emission of greenhouse gases, unleashing the well-known “greenhouse effect” into the atmosphere.

The also president of the Chamber of the Construction Industry (CMIC) in Mérida said that problems with the CFE still persist, where it no longer allows construction in some areas of the city, including municipalities, however, he indicated that for this does not occur, a preliminary analysis is carried out to solve the situation.

The Yucatan Times
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