 The solar panels typically last 50 years. For the homeowners, it was a no-brainer. They were getting low-interest loans from banks for the solar panels, and the power companies were paying for the power generated from those panels at a higher rate, high enough to pay off the loans. It was like getting solar power panels for free. If anything, the government underestimated how rapidly Germans would embrace the program and thus how quickly power would be produced by the program.