Can I put solar panels on a block of flats with a community of owners in Spain?

How it works

Royal Decree 244/2019 regulates shared self-consumption (autoconsumo colectivo): a single installation, usually on the roof of the building, that shares its energy between several consumers. Each participant has an allocation coefficient, the percentage of the output that belongs to them, and the energy they do not use is credited on their bill as surplus (excedentes).

If you live in a flat (apartment), this is the realistic way to get solar: the roof belongs to the comunidad (the community of owners), not to you.

Two ways to do it

For the communal services

The panels feed the community’s own meter: lift, stair and garage lighting, pumps, gates. Everyone’s service charges go down.

For the owners

The panels share energy between the homes that sign up, each with its coefficient. Each owner saves on their own bill according to their share. Both options can also be combined.

What the meeting needs

• A common installation to access new collective energy supplies: any owner can ask for it, and it is approved with the votes of one third of the owners who also hold one third of the shares (article 17.1 of the Horizontal Property Act). Those who do not vote in favour do not pay, but if they join later they pay their updated share plus legal interest.
• Energy efficiency works: approved by simple majority if the annual cost passed on does not exceed twelve months of ordinary service charges (article 17.2).

Distance between panels and homes

The installation can be nearby rather than on the same building: the original limit of 500 metres was extended to 2,000 metres by Royal Decree-law 20/2022.

What it costs

A communal installation is priced as a project, depending on the roof, the number of participating owners and the power. As a reference for scale, an individual 5 kW home installation costs 5,500 to 7,000 euros.

In new buildings and maintenance

Many new developments in Seville are handed over with communal solar on the roof. If yours is one, find out what the energy is used for and how it is maintained. A communal installation needs periodic checks of panels, inverter and protective devices, which can be included in the building’s electrical maintenance.

A prior study of the roof, consumption and expected savings makes the vote much easier. In Seville, Spain, see shared solar for buildings and building maintenance.