Thousands of Czech households with rooftop solar panels could soon find themselves paying unexpected penalties. Starting July 1, a new regulation will require solar system owners to meet stricter technical and contractual obligations—or face monthly fines amounting to hundreds of Czech crowns for unauthorized electricity feed-in.
“Most photovoltaic installations registered at the end of last year have a single combined EAN code, unless the owners specifically requested it to be split,” said Alisa Horáková from ČEZ Group.
The new rules demand that each solar installation have two separate EAN codes: one for consumption and one for electricity production. In addition, the production EAN must be linked to an electricity supplier who will handle what’s called the imbalance—the discrepancy between forecasted and actual production, which incurs a fee.
“Without this step, electricity cannot be sold or distributed. This applies even to those who, under contract, are not permitted to feed electricity into the grid. Anyone who hasn’t made an agreement with a supplier risks being fined for unauthorized supply to the grid,” added Horáková.
In preparation, ČEZ has reached out to 60,000 of its customers. A significant portion—around a third—have yet to respond. “By our estimates, this issue affects tens of thousands of households across the market, but exact figures are only available from individual suppliers.”
“Clients are always contacted by email, and the method of communication depends on whether they have already signed an electricity purchase agreement. If they have, we arrange to transfer their contract to the new EAN,” explained Lubomír Budný from E.ON.
Securing a new supplier agreement can be time-consuming—sometimes taking over a month. “It’s expected that as the deadline approaches, suppliers will become overwhelmed with these requests. So it’s not wise to leave this to the last minute,” warned Tomáš Kadlec. Moreover, energy suppliers are not obligated to accept every application.
Owners are advised to verify whether they have already received a production EAN. Those who installed solar panels after July 1, 2024, should have automatically received it in their contract. For installations predating that, the distributor should have sent the new code separately.
“However, if someone believes they haven’t received a production EAN, we recommend contacting their distributor or resolving the issue with their electricity supplier, who will assume responsibility for the imbalance,” said Horáková.
