Essent has become the latest energy supplier to charge owners of solar panels for sending their excess power back to the grid.

The company will charge 11.5 cents per kilowatt of electricity it receives from June 1. It said introducing the charge was one reason it was able to cut its variable rate tariff from July by 35% to 26.5 cents/KwH.

Earlier this month Eneco said it would be charging the same levy for excess electricity, while Vattenfall also plans to introduce charges but has not yet published its rates.

Boudewijn den Herder, chief commercial officer of Essent, said the move would mean customers without solar panels would see their bills cut by €250 a year for an average household.

The company also said solar panel owners would still save an average €600 a year on their bill once the cost of installing them has been repaid, which typically takes eight years.

Essent said it would contact customers with solar panels to discuss other cost-saving options.

“We recognise the concerns of solar panel owners and have looked at how else we can help them,” Den Herder said.

“One of the initiatives is that Essent is making a sustainability fund available. For some that will take the form of a discount on a heat pump, others can take part in a trial of a domestic battery.”