Fluvius appeals to solar panel owners: apply for your premium in time!
The rollout of digital energy meters among the last large group of solar panel owners is starting the final sprint. Early this year, 403 000 customers were still to get the meters. Today there are 157 000. This includes almost 88 000 homes that may still be entitled to a retroactive investment allowance (RAI). As that premium will end at the end of 2025, Fluvius is sending all affected customers a message this week with a call to be sure to apply for the premium on time.
Premium expires at the end of 2025
Customers who had their solar panels installed between 2014 and the end of 2020 are often still entitled to a retroactive investment premium. For an average installation, that amount is between 1,000 and 2,000 euros. Important: after 31 December 2025, the premium can no longer be applied for, and applications can only be made if a digital meter has been installed. Therefore, both prosumers who have already received a digital meter in recent months and customers where one is yet to be installed in the coming months have every interest in applying for it on time.
The last customers with solar panels who currently still have an analogue electricity meter will receive a personal invitation to make an appointment for the installation of the meters. Fluvius urges them to schedule it as soon as possible and apply for the premium immediately after the installation. All info on the retroactive investment premium is on the Fluvius website.
Balance 'reversed counter' is automatically compensated
When Fluvius visits to install the digital meter, we automatically calculate whether there is still a balance 'reversed counter'. That is the difference between the meter reading at the previous final statement and the meter reading at the meter replacement. That balance will then be settled on the next final bill, just as with the previous reverse counter system. So prosumers never lose their already accrued solar power at the time of installation.
Note: customers should wait until their next annual statement after installation to change energy supplier or switch between single or dual hourly tariffs, for example. Because then their balance does return to zero, as was the case before. The same goes for starting up energy shares, monthly statements or the SMR3 metering regime.
Already 2 800 000 buildings with digital meters
In total, digital meters for electricity and gas are today installed in 2 800 000 houses, flats and small businesses in Flanders, accounting for 76% of the total. Specifically for solar panel owners, 81% already have digital meters. No fewer than 846,000 households actively track their energy consumption via my.fluvius.be. Some 288,000 customers use a smart app or control system for that purpose. More info is at: www.fluvius.be/digitalemeter .
Lara Lammens