sonnen presents a complete package with a photovoltaic system, sonnenBatterie and electric car on a subscription basis in Germany
With sonnenNow, sonnen is expanding its offering as an energy provider and moving into electric mobility with the launch of sonnenDrive. This will offer households an all in one solution for 100 % green energy consumption at an affordable cost. sonnen thus removes previous barriers to the use of renewable energy and makes them even more accessible to a wider group of people.
Wildpoldsried, 12th November 2019 - with sonnenNow, it is now even easier for households to produce and consume their own generated electricity, without any additional investment costs. In addition, they will be able to take out a subscription for an electric car and thus switch to clean mobility without any long-term commitments.
The sonnenNow package allows customers to rent a photovoltaic system and a sonnenBatterie for a monthly fee, rather than having to purchase them. The monthly fee, which includes all electricity costs, is equal to the existing electricity bill; that is, the household incurs the same costs as previously. One reason for this high cost-effectiveness is the fact that sonnen also uses the sonnenBatteries for its virtual power plant and can therefore generate revenue on the energy market for its customers.
As a result, households are largely able to supply themselves with their own, clean electricity. Any power that the homeowner requires in excess of his own production is derived from the sonnenCommunity. This means that the homeowner is able to use 100 percent clean and green electricity whilst being independent from conventional utilities. The required sonnenFlat electricity contract is also included in the package.
In addition, customers will be able to make use of sonnenDrive and subscribe to a brand-new electric car. What’s special about sonnenDrive is the comparatively short contract period of only 6 months. This is an ideal timeframe to try out how electric mobility might fit into their lifestyle without having to make any long-term commitments. Unlike with traditional leasing contracts, costs for insurance, maintenance or even tires are already transparently included in the subscription fee. There is no deposit or final payment. The manufacturer-independent offer will be able to provide a suitable vehicle for each and every customer.
The monthly costs for the electric car will be similar to those for conventional cars and may be even lower. This means that customers can already use an electric vehicle for a subscription fee of just 250 Euro per month. And with the sonnen charging card, users can also access a network of over 100,000 charging stations across Europe while on the move.
“With our new offer, we are true to our promise to be an energy supplier of the future. This is why we want to provide our customers with all the technologies and services they require to maximize the use of their self-generated power and benefit from it,” says Christoph Ostermann, CEO and founder of sonnen, adding, “the transition to renewable energy for homeowners must be simple and affordable. That’s why we are eliminating existing barriers to entry exactly where the energy transition is taking place: at people’s homes.”
Along with eliminating the investment costs for PV and storage systems, sonnenNow also includes service and possible repairs to the hardware. There is only a one-off fee to get connected to the grid.
Anyone who decides at a later point in time that they would like to buy the system outright, can do so at any time at the current market value. The upper limit of the size of the photovoltaic system with sonnenNow is 29.99 kWp.
The combination with an electric car offers sonnen customers a wide range of benefits, as they can charge their car using their own self-generated power. sonnen already introduced its intelligent charging device, called the sonnenCharger, back in 2018, thereby taking its first step towards electro mobility. This allows the car to be charged specifically with self-generated solar power and to be connected to sonnen's virtual power plant.
Both offers can be used independently or as a complete package in Germany. This means that all customers with a sonnenBatterie or a sonnen energy contract will be able to take advantage of the electric car subscription. Interested customers can now reserve sonnenDrive and at the start of 2020 the first cars will be delivered.