The Cut: What can the UK learn from Germany’s plug-in solar policy?

• Plug-in solar panels will be available to everyone on 27th August
• Germany is Europe’s leading market, and the UK has a lot of catching up to do
• Wales will soon welcome its first ever offshore wind farm

Another week, another heatwave. Those of you who are avid readers of The Cut will know that we talk a lot about how investing in clean and renewable energy is the only way to save households money and help the environment.  

The good news is that renewables are storming ahead. Last week we reported that renewables accounted for more than half of our electricity generation in 2025, and that July (last month) was the best ever month for solar in the UK.

This month we’re happy to bring you the news that heat pump sales are booming. Octopus recorded its best-ever month for heat pump sales in July. Sales were a massive 71% higher than they were in July 2025, and now one-in-four homes in England have a heat pump.

Renewables are taking over and more and more people are cottoning on: if you want to stay cool during a heatwave and warm in winter without being at the mercy of gas price chaos, heat pumps, solar panels and supporting home energy tools like double glazing and insulation are the only way to do so. 

On that topic, we’re only days away from plug-in solar panels being available to buy in the UK, and possibly on supermarket shelves. 

There’s a lot we in the UK can learn from our European neighbours on this front, in particular Germany, who have become the most mature market for plug-in solar in Europe by simply tweaking their laws. 

That’s why this week we’ve taken a deep dive into the big lessons the UK has to learn from Germany as plug-in solar day (the 27th August) gets ever nearer. 

We think plug-in solar has the potential to open up all sorts of avenues for clean energy in the UK. Will you be buying one? 

What can the UK learn from Germany’s plug-in solar boom?

Plug-in solar has the potential to make clean, cheap energy available for every British consumer. Germany has huge success here, so what can the UK learn?

E.ON customers save more than £2mn by not using peak time power

Households with E.ON Next have saved roughly £2.3mn by moving their electricity usage away from 4pm-7pm, however, many more are missing out because they simply don’t understand what ‘off-peak’ means.

MRCOOL unveils DIY heat pump that doubles as air conditioning

Homeowners might soon have another heat pump to choose from with US firm MRCOOL launching its Monoblock MTHP Series, an all-in-one, wall mounted heat pump that can keep a home cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Wales is about to get its first ever offshore wind farm

People in Wales will soon be able to get offshore wind energy after the Welsh government gave the nod to the Llŷr Wind Farm in the Celtic Sea, off the coast of Pembrokeshire.

Written By

Maximilian Schwerdtfeger Deputy editor

Max joined The Eco Experts as content manager in February 2024 and became deputy editor in 2025. He has written about sustainability issues across numerous industries, including maritime, supply chain, finance, mining, and retail. He has also written extensively for consumer titles like City AM, The Morning Star, and The Daily Express.

He has represented The Eco Experts on national television several times, including the BBC’s Sunday Morning Live and ITV Tonight .

In 2020, he covered in detail the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) legislation on sulphur emissions and its effects on the global container shipping market as online editor of Port Technology International.

He also explored the initiatives major container ports and terminals have launched in order to ship vital goods across the world without polluting the environment.

Since then, he has reported heavily on the impact made by environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices on the supply chain of minerals, with a particular focus on rare earth mining in Africa.

As part of this, in 2022 Max visited mines and ports in Angola to hone in on the challenges being faced by one of the world’s biggest producers of rare earth minerals.

His most recent sustainability-related work came much closer to home, as he investigated the eco-challenges faced by independent retailers in the UK, specifically looking at how they can cut emissions and continue to thrive.

Max lives in South London and is an avid reader of books on modern history. He has also recently learned to play the game Mahjong and takes every opportunity to do so. He is also yet to find a sport he doesn’t enjoy watching.

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Will Georgiadis

Since 2018, Will has been the engine of the Expert Reviews production team as sub-editor, senior sub-editor, and now production editor. Will is responsible for making sure that the content Expert Reviews publishes is of the highest quality; he also keeps the team’s vast workflow running smoothly and maintains the ancient and revered Expert Reviews style guide. With five years of experience behind him and thousands of articles edited, sub-edited and triple-checked, Will is confident that you won’t find a single mistake on the site – and if you think you have, you’re wrong.

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