SolarCoin logo and Narec DE solar PV system

UK based renewable energy firm, Narec Distributed Energy (NDE), has announced it will now accept the renewable energy based SolarCoin cryptocurrency as payments for solar training courses.

SolarCoin is a cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin, but given to providers of electricity from solar. For every MWh of energy generated, The SolarCoin Foundation give the generator 1 SolarCoin (§1). As opposed to Bitcoin, SolarCoin also has a far lower energy footprint. The idea behind SolarCoin is to support the production of solar electricity globally

There are two purposes behind NDE’s decision to accept SolarCoin, the first is that anyone who generates solar electricity may have SolarCoins, the second is that by accepting SolarCoin, this helps establish the cryptocurrency, hopefully helping the value stabilise. NDE’s acceptance of SolarCoin follows on from the ACWA Power’s recent announcement they have registered to receive SolarCoins.

The course provided by NDE which can be paid for with SolarCoin is the LOGIC accredited Level 3 Solar PV Installation and Maintenance. This course fulfils part of the requirements for Microgeneration Certification Scheme registration, and is open only to qualified electricians.

Currently, the value of SolarCoin is too low to make a meaningful impact on the economics of solar, but a modest increase from the current value of £0.36 to a value of £50/MWh could have major implications for the economics of solar. NDE will accept the equivalent in SolarCoins on the day of payment as the cost of the course in GBP. At the time of writing this means a course will currently cost over a thousand SolarCoins. Hopefully with future increases in SolarCoin the cost of the courses in SolarCoins will decrease.

Hayley Corney, the NDE Renewable Energy Training Manager said:

“At NDE we are always looking to involve ourselves in new developments within the renewable energy industry, and by accepting SolarCoins, this enables us to provide training to the staff of developers who can claim the cryptocurrency”

The training courses are run whenever there is demand for them, people interested in attending courses should contact NDE on training@narecde.co.uk or 01670 357 638.

NDE will accept SolarCoins from the 14th February onwards.