How solar panels for commercial buildings help cut energy costs

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As businesses prepare for the EV transition, installing solar panels in commercial buildings can help manage energy demand and cut costs.

Energy challenges faced by commercial buildings

No longer just shells of offices and shared spaces, commercial buildings now face rising energy costs, increasing tenant expectations, and the looming 2030 EPC B regulations. This has resulted in a series of challenges:

High daytime electricity consumption, especially in office hours
Rising daytime tariffs
Growing demand for onsite EV charging
Sustainability reporting obligations
Building value strongly linked to EPC and ESG metrics
Competition for tenants based on amenities and green credentials

As a result, commercial buildings are now expected to behave more like small energy ecosystems: they must generate power, manage demand, support electric vehicles, and prove their environmental credentials.

Solar panels: a natural fit for commercial buildings

In this new landscape, solar power technologies are becoming one of the main pillars of modern building strategy, reshaping a commercial building’s energy profile by lowering costs, and improving efficiency,

Furthermore, solar panels can turn the rooftop and car park into strategic assets: commercial buildings consume most of their electricity during daylight hours, when solar panels do their most effective work.

This alignment makes solar one of the most financially beneficial upgrades available today.

Key financial & operational benefits of solar panels

This alignment makes solar one of the most financially beneficial upgrades available today:

Immediate reduction in electricity bills
Predictable and stable long term energy costs
Strong contribution to EPC B improvement
Tangible sustainability and Scope 2 reductions
Opportunity to store solar power for late afternoon peaks (when paired with a battery)
Increased asset value and tenant appeal

Most commercial roofs are flat or lightly pitched, making installation straightforward. Even smaller systems can offset a significant fraction of daytime power demand.

Adopting solar panels and other solar power technologies also signals to tenants that the building is modernising and adapting, an increasingly important differentiator in competitive markets.

Solar panels + EV charging: a single integrated system

The most effective commercial energy strategies pair solar generation with EV charging, and, where beneficial, a small battery for load smoothing.

When these assets work together, the commercial building behaves like its own ecosystem

Benefits of integration:

Charge vehicles using your own solar energy, reducing imported electricity
Fewer grid constraints because solar handles part of the load
Lower operational energy costs through self-consumption
Improved EPC rating
Highly attractive to tenants and staff
Supports corporate fleet electrification

For office parks and multi-tenant buildings, this is becoming a key amenity: a practical sustainability benefit that tenants can see and use daily.

Solar power and battery storage

Not every commercial building needs a battery, but many benefit from one:

Sites with peak demand charges
Multi-tenant buildings with unpredictable load patterns
EV hubs with clustered chargers
Buildings with solar looking to optimise self-consumption
Locations with grid constraints

A battery smooths the load profile, reduces penalty tariffs and ensures EV charging doesn’t create sudden spikes.

The financial case for solar panels: strong and getting stronger

Commercial buildings using solar alone are typically seeing:

30 – 60% reduction in daytime grid import
5 – 7-year payback periods
Higher property valuation from improved EPC rating
CAPEX offset through grants or tax incentives
Higher occupancy rates for green certified buildings

Adding EV charging improves tenant value and provides a secondary income stream through usage billing.

Example:

office park solar + EV integration installed:

350 kWp solar system
20 EV chargers with smart load balancing
Optional 100 kWh battery for peak control

The results:

£55k annual energy savings
22% higher solar self-consumption
EPC lifted from C to B
EV charging revenue recovering 40% of infrastructure cost

Case examples

Multi-Tenant Office Building, Southeast

Challenge: Tenants requesting EV charging; grid unable to support additional load. Solution: Smart chargers + rooftop solar panels.

Outcome: No grid upgrade required; building now covers 42% of EV charging demand via solar.

Commercial HQ, West Midlands

Challenge: Rising daytime energy bills and sustainability targets.

Solution: 250 kWp solar, monitoring & controls.

Outcome: £38k saved annually; EPC improved; building marketed as a ‘green tenancy hub.’

Strengthen your commercial building’s energy strategy with solar panels

Commercial buildings aren’t just places of work; they’re becoming flexible energy assets. Solar panels create a more efficient, sustainable, and future-ready site that benefits both owners and tenants.

The Energy Group helps commercial property operators design and integrate systems that lower costs, improve compliance, and support the shift to electric mobility.

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