{"id":502146,"date":"2026-03-29T17:55:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-29T17:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/502146\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T17:55:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T17:55:08","slug":"400-plug-in-solar-panels-on-sale-at-john-lewis-and-sainsburys-within-months","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/502146\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00a3400 plug-in solar panels on sale at John Lewis and Sainsbury\u2019s \u2018within months\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Major retailers, including Sainsbury\u2019s and Currys, are planning to sell plug-in solar panels after the Government said they will be on sale in UK stores \u201cwithin months\u201d.<\/p>\n

Regulations currently prohibit the panels from being plugged into a circuit connected to the grid \u2013 including household sockets.<\/p>\n

But major retailers including Iceland and Lidl are working with the Government and Ofgem to update the rules and allow the panels to be connected to domestic sockets.<\/p>\n

New FeatureIn ShortQuick Stories. Same trusted journalism.<\/p>\n

The i Paper understands that both Lidl and Iceland have not confirmed plans to sell the panels, but intend to do so when the regulations are updated.<\/p>\n

This paper can also reveal that Sainsbury\u2019s \u2013 which owns brands such as Argos \u2013 and Currys are also planning to sell the panels if the guidance is updated. <\/p>\n

Sainsbury\u2019s is currently reviewing sources for the panels, The i Paper understands, while Currys is also exploring options to add to its solar range.<\/p>\n

When approached by The i Paper, John Lewis did not rule out selling the plug-in panels, but said no official plans had been made.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are constantly reviewing our ranges to make sure we stock what our customers want to buy,\u201d a John Lewis spokesperson said, adding that there are \u201cno plans at the present time\u201d to sell the panels.<\/p>\n

Ministers planning to get panels on the market in months<\/p>\n

The Government has said it is already working with retailers like Lidl and Amazon, alongside manufacturers such as EcoFlow, to bring plug-in solar to the UK market<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has promised that the solar panels will be available in shops \u201cwithin months\u201d, while EcoFlow has said it hopes people will be able to use them this summer.<\/p>\n

The panels cost roughly \u00a3400 and could cut around \u00a3100 off household bills each year. That means the devices\u2019 purchase cost could be covered within about four years by the savings they generate, with any additional electricity they produce being effectively free.<\/p>\n

To function, the panels could be plugged into household sockets and installed in outdoor areas such as balconies, rooftops, gardens, and external walls.<\/p>\n

Ministers are working with Energy Networks Association, Distribution Network Operators (the organisations that own and control the electricity distribution network), and the regulator Ofgem.<\/p>\n

Specifically, it will update the \u201cG98 distribution code and wiring regulations BS 7671\u201d to allow UK households to connect <800W plug-in solar panels to domestic mains sockets \u2013 without the need for an electrician and with tailored safety standards.<\/p>\n

As more suppliers join the market, the price of the panels is expected to drop further, according to Gareth Simkins, a spokesperson for Solar Energy UK, which represents more than 400 companies in the energy sector.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Government clearly expects plug-in solar arrays to become a mass-market consumer product, which is exactly what has happened in countries such as the Netherlands and Germany,\u201d he told The i Paper.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf a good number of major retailers start selling them, that should certainly push down their cost.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rising interest to buy panels<\/p>\n

The German Solar Association<\/a> has estimated that more than one million plug-in solar installations have so far been made across Germany.<\/p>\n

In the UK, Simkins said companies represented by Solar Energy have reported thousands of inquiries by customers interested in solar panels as energy prices began rising after the Iran war broke out. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not unreasonable to think that we\u2019re going to see thousands of these installed in the coming months and years,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

In November 2025, the number of certified solar panel installations surpassed 203,125 \u2013 the previous annual record set in 2011, according to the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS).<\/p>\n

The MCS, which tracks renewable energy installations, said the figure brought the total number of certified solar panels installed in the UK to about 1,850,000.<\/p>\n

Frankie Mayo, senior analyst at the global energy think-tank Ember, said: \u201cDomestic-scale solar installations, completely subsidy-free, hit record levels at the end of last year. This will only accelerate the rate of home-upgrades across the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce you\u2019ve got solar, electric vehicles and heat pumps become so much more attractive too. The electro-tech revolution is coming to every UK household now.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Major retailers, including Sainsbury\u2019s and Currys, are planning to sell plug-in solar panels after the Government said they…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":502147,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[84,59,5408,60659,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-502146","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-gb","10":"tag-solar-energy","11":"tag-solar-panel","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=502146"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502146\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/502147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=502146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=502146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=502146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}