IKEA Selling Solar Panels To People Who’ve Run Out Of Tongue-Twisting Furniture To Buy

You’ve got the Fjell this and the Hemnes that — what’s an IKEA-loving customer to do when your home has been decked out in wall-to-wall Swedish furniture bearing unpronounceable names? Well, there’s always the pesky task of powering your dwelling, something that can’t be done with a flat-pack dresser. That’s why IKEA is getting into the energy business, offering solar panels for sale to British customers.

IKEA’s foray into home power is starting in Britain, where it will sell residential solar panels as part of a plan to market renewable energy options around the world, reports the Associated Press.

The 3.36 kilowatt systems for a semi-detached home will start at around £5,700 ($9,200) and will come with an in-store consultation and design session , as well as installation, maintenance and energy monitoring service. Which is good because we can’t imagine setting up a solar panel using only wordless instructions and an Allen key.

“In the past few years the prices on solar panels have dropped, so it’s a really good price now,” IKEA Chief Sustainability Officer Steve Howard says. “It’s the right time to go for the consumers.”

While here in the U.S. it’s possible to buy solar panels from retailers like Home Depot or Lowe’s, elsewhere in the world it isn’t so easy to go green. IKEA is starting with Britain for this first run at the market because it has an ideal combo of mid-level electricity prices and a government that offers incentives to consumers for trying renewable energy.

Google Translate says “solar power” is “solenergi” in Swedish, so we’ve done the hard work for you already, IKEA. You’re welcome. At least the name would actually make sense, eh?

IKEA starts selling solar panels for homes [Associated Press]

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