Solar modules increase in price dramatically from July 1

The price of photovoltaics, inverters and batteries increases dramatically from July 1, 2025 due to a product ecotax. It jumps from 2% to 16%, which is many times higher than the typical European range of 0.3%-3% of the price of, for example, a photovoltaic panel. The reason is that three out of four companies in Bulgaria that utilize electronics and electrical engineering, including components for solar systems, simultaneously decide to raise the prices of their services 10 times, according to a statement by the Bulgarian Association for Electrical Engineering and Electronics (BASEL).

The price increases are being made without serious arguments from these companies, which are an alternative to avoid paying higher product fees for producers and importers, set by the government and collected by the Environmental Protection Activities Management Company (EPMA), the association points out.

According to a BASEL study of the solar industry, the Bulgarian eco-tax is one of the highest in the EU by a huge margin.

"The simultaneous increase in the eco-tax will add hundreds of levs to the price of a standard solar installation for a household - a measure that risks making solar energy inaccessible to many Bulgarian families. Also, businesses and households that have installed photovoltaics on the roofs of buildings and received EU funding did not foresee this price increase. "They will have to bear the new financial burden at their own expense," commented Dr. Eng. Dimitar Beleliev, Chairman of the Management Board of BASEL.

The increase in eco-taxes affects not only importers of solar components, but also manufacturers and importers of air conditioners, household electrical appliances, lighting fixtures, equipment and many others. Therefore, BASEL, the Association of Household Electrical Appliance Manufacturers (APPLiA Bulgaria) and BIA propose that the government reduce the product fees of the Environmental Protection Agency by 10 to 12 times for 2 years, until a solution to the crisis is found. Years ago, BASEL representatives tried to establish independent organization for the recovery of obsolete electronic and energy equipment, such organizations exist in EU countries, but are "hitting a brick wall" due to the overwhelming licensing requirements in Bulgaria. The Prime Minister and the Minister of Environment and Water are aware of the problem, the association says.