A couple months ago IKEA announced tha they were going to begin charging for the use of plastic bags in order to try to help keep the amount that get thrown away down. But now they’ve announced that they may be offering solar pannels as well:
The Swede Hereafter
IKEA invests in cleantech, may soon stock solar panels
Posted at 2:43 PM on 08 Aug 2008
Heading to IKEA for some meatballs and easy-to-assemble furniture? You may soon be able to pick up solar panels as well. The Swedish manufacturer plans to invest some $75 million in a handful of cleantech startups, focusing on the areas of solar energy, lighting, sustainable materials, energy efficiency, and water conservation. Ultimately, IKEA has a goal of stocking its shelves with products like ABBA smart meters and Ace of Base solar panels (OK, we made up the names). Any cleantech products offered by IKEA, which hosts half a billion shoppers in its 270 stores in 35 countries each year, will meet the company motto of “affordable solutions for better living,” assures the company’s Johan Stenebo. And what you come across at your hometown IKEA could be dependent on location, says Stenebo: “It’s quite natural that, for instance, solar panels are more interesting to Spaniards and Californians and so forth than they would be to Swedes.”
From The Grist: http://www.grist.org/news/2008/08/08/ikea/?source=daily
Now what college student or young professional doesn’t love IKEA? Afterall, its affordable and decent looking stuff for your apartment or dorm room. And I’ll admit it myself as well, I have a few pieces of IKEA in my room that will probably follow me into the apartment on the first.
I will say, that it is awesome that they may be offering this. Its another way for people to green up their lives. The only thing I wonder about however is how long will the solar panels last? Hopefully they’ll do better than a couple of the stools that I’ve owned… I guess we’ll just have to wait and see 
