Belgium's grid operator Fluvius has reported that around 81% of Flanders' residential PV system owners have now installed a digital meter.
“The last customers with solar panels who still have an analog electricity meter will receive a personal invitation to schedule an appointment for the smart meter installation,” Fluvius said in a statement, noting that around 88,000 are still on time to apply for the subsidies that the Belgian authorities are awarding for buying and deploying the meters in its Flemish-speaking macro-region.
For a typical installation, the investment premium amount ranges from €1,000 ($1,185) to €2,000.
The Flemish government started requiring smart meter installations for rooftop solar owners in the region in 2021. Homeowners with solar systems less than 15 years old and installed before 2021 are allowed to retain analog meters until the end of 2025, when the switch became mandatory.
In October 2024, Fluvius estimated that 403,000 solar panel owners had yet to transition. That number has since fallen to 157,000.
“A total of 2,800,000 homes, apartments, and small businesses in Flanders currently have digital meters for electricity and gas, accounting for 76% of the total,” Fluvius said.
Fluvius has previously emphasized that the transition to digital meters is essential for managing a power grid with rising solar generation, heat pump adoption, and electric vehicle charging.
The mandatory rollout comes as Flanders’ residential solar market shifts to a subsidy-free model. The region ended incentives for new rooftop solar installations and phased out net metering in 2024.
Belgium is projected to reach around 33.6 GW of installed PV capacity by the end of 2035, according to a new report from Belgian grid operator Elia.
The country is also predicted to see its operational PV power increase from around 12.6 GW at the end of 2025 to 22.5 GW at the end of 2030.
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