Marblanc Solar is the highest-rated English-speaking solar energy company on the Costa del Sol. We complete fully legal solar panel installations for homeowners, including solar panels, solar batteries, EV chargers and more.
Spain has seen a record surge in residential solar battery installations following the nationwide blackout, or apagón, on 28 April 2025.
According to the Association of Renewable Energy Companies (APPA Renovables), households added 136 MWh of solar battery capacity between January and June 2025 – an 88% rise compared to the same period last year.
In fact, homeowners installed as many batteries in the first six months of 2025 as in the whole of 2024.
APPA president Jon Macías explained: “The April blackout marked a before-and-after for homeowners, who are now seeking to secure their electricity supply.”
He added that many of these systems were “retrofitted,” meaning batteries were connected to existing home solar energy systems.
In the week immediately after the blackout, Marbella-based Marblanc Solar retrofitted 10 solar batteries for existing clients. In the months since, the company has reported steadily rising demand for storage solutions across the Costa del Sol.
“This region has always been prone to blackouts in some areas,” said Roman Mitchell, co-owner of Marblanc Solar and a certified survey engineer.
“We’ve been installing batteries for years, but there’s definitely been a surge in interest since April.”
He added that Marblanc Solar usually prepares two proposals for clients – one with a battery and one without – including clear breakeven points and expected bill reductions.
Roman explained that for most clients who decide not to add a battery straight away, Marblanc Solar designs systems to make retrofitting easy and cost-effective later.
He cautioned that this is not always the case.
One recent client wanted to retrofit a battery to a system installed by a major electricity company, but because the original inverter was a grid-only model, the team had to replace key parts of the system.
“This ended up adding significant costs,” Mitchell said. “It’s a reminder that proper design at the outset saves money in the long run.”
You can read more about this retrofitted solar panel installation in Mijas Costa here.
a Solar Battery Alone Won’t Save You from Blackouts
For all their benefits, solar batteries cannot keep the lights on during a grid outage.
That’s because standard inverters automatically shut off in the event of a power cut regardless of whether you have a battery installed or not.
To keep power flowing, households need two pieces of equipment:
- A solar battery
- A backup box
A backup box isolates a home’s circuits from the grid, allowing solar panels and batteries to continue supplying electricity safely.
For a breakdown of the two main types of backup box and their approximate costs, Marblanc Solar has published a full guide here: Want Solar Power in a Blackout? Use a Backup Box.
“I always recommend a solar battery and backup system for anyone who works from home or has high night-time consumption,” said Adam Millington, co-owner of Marblanc Solar and a qualified electrician.
“This includes households with EV chargers, pool heaters, heat pumps, air conditioning or extensive home automation.”
Millington added that in these cases, a battery can slash bills by 80% or more.
But he also noted that the emotional impact of April’s blackout lingers with many clients.
“I’ve heard genuine worries from homeowners that another apagón could last longer,” he said. “If it had gone on just a few more hours, some homes without alarms could have faced burglary risks, and families would have been cut off without phone signal.”
For those considering storage, Marblanc Solar offers free solar surveys using industry-leading Pylon software to model real production based on roof orientation and panel placement.
The survey compares system costs with and without batteries, giving homeowners a clear picture of payback and peace of mind – completely free of charge.
Click here to book in your free solar survey today.
