Rooftop solar – great for business, the countryside, and the environment

With the UK’s 2050 net zero target looming into view, we look at how a dramatic increase in the use of rooftop solar energy could help achieve that, whilst also providing tangible financial savings for business and residential customers. With enough available rooftop space to meet much of the target, rooftop solar can help protect the countryside and the environment, a win all around.

Renewable energy is very much in the news these days with the recent announcement that, for the first time ever, wind power was the biggest source of energy in the UK during the first three months of 2023. Running alongside that the government has stated that it wants 70GW of solar power by 2035.

The national picture on rooftop solar

CPRE fully supports the push for increased provision of renewable energy and has launched a nation-wide Rooftop Renewables Campaign, focused on maximizing the use of commercial and domestic rooftops for solar energy capture. A major new CPRE report has found that over half the solar panels needed to hit national net zero targets could be fitted on rooftops and in car parks.

According to Solar Energy UK there is currently around 15GW of installed solar energy capacity. However, only one-third of this is coming from domestic and commercial rooftops. Yet there is an estimated 617,000 acres of available south facing roof space (larger than the area of London and Manchester combined) that alongside other commercial land such as car parks, could provide up to 50GW. This is a very large proportion of the government’s 2035 solar target.

By contrast the research shows that meeting national energy targets through ground-mounted solar installations would require an enormous amount of land in the countryside – land that is needed for growing food, and for supporting the environment, and for wildlife and our own health and well-being.

Read our full report

And there are other issues with ground-mounted solar energy generation. The national grid that distributes energy around the UK simply does not have the capacity for all the currently-proposed ground-mounted solar farms to be connected to it. Many of these ground based installations won’t be connected to the grid for years, perhaps more than 15 years according to a recent report from The Institution of Energy and Technology.

There is also the issue of energy pricing. Everyone wants lower energy costs, but ground-mounted solar farms do not provide cheaper energy for the consumer. All energy sold in the UK is pegged to the price of natural gas. So if you’re paying a supplier for your energy, then that energy will cost the same whether it has been generated from wind, sunshine, or fossil fuels.

But solar energy generated from rooftops does provide cheaper energy, because it is being generated and consumed onsite by you, the rooftop owner. You are not purchasing the energy from a supplier, and there is no delay in connecting to the grid because you are utilising the energy that the rooftop panels generate.

What’s happening with rooftop solar in Hertfordshire?

Currently around 1400 acres of greenfield land in the Hertfordshire countryside are under threat from proposed large-scale ground-mounted solar farms. (See our solar inventory). All of the proposed sites are productive agricultural land, and most are in designated protected areas such as the Green Belt and the setting of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. If built, there will be severe harm to protected landscapes and the public rights of way on which thousands of local people depend for their recreation and well-being, as well as destruction of wildlife habitats and loss of biodiversity.

So we strongly advocate for roof-mounted solar as a great alternative and a key means of protecting the countryside. And we’re delighted to see more installation of roof-mounted solar by home-owners, businesses and other organisations throughout Hertfordshire.

According to a local solar panel installer based in Harpenden, “There is huge potential within the county and with the recent energy crisis more and more businesses are enquiring about solar installation. However there is still a lack of general awareness so it’s important that organisations like CPRE are helping to spread the word”.

We believe there are many compelling reasons for commercial building owners to install solar. These include:

• Substantial cost savings- even small organisations can save hundreds of pounds each year.
• Increased energy security from onsite power generation.
• The potential to sell excess energy back to the supplier for additional income.
• Business solar installations may qualify for tax relief under the Annual Investment Allowance, covering a portion of solar system costs.
• Most businesses are active in the daytime, when solar panels produce the most energy. The option to incorporate a battery storage system allows the power to be utilised at any time.
• Solar panels reduce the organisation’senvironmental footprint, in keeping with the expectations of customers, shareholders and investors.

A testimonial comes from a business in Rickmansworth. Ben Collins of RBJ Reinforced Plastics Ltd told us of his company’s experience: “We have had solar panels installed on 3 of our roofs. The solar output has a capacity of 62kW and is averaging about 40kW currently. Disruption was fairly minimal and there have been absolutely no issues so far. Both financial and environmental factors were deciding factors for us to proceed with solar power and we are hoping to recover the outlay in costs in approximately 5 to 6 years’ time based on the current output”.

Elsewhere in Hertfordshire, we were pleased that Dacorum Borough Council recently granted permission for the installation of rooftop solar arrays for two commercial premises in Hemel Hempstead. One is for 721kW of generating capacity for a corporate headquarters in Maylands Avenue, and the other is for 80kW of generating capacity for a car dealership in London Road.

And at CPRE Hertfordshire’s small office in Welwyn, we have recently completed installation of our own rooftop solar panels. This should reduce our charity’s energy costs dramatically.

What can each of us do to help?

CPRE wants to spark a rooftop revolution to dramatically increase the pace and scale of rooftop solar energy generation. Please help protect the environment and the countryside by signing our petition calling on the government to set an ambitious national target for rooftop solar.

Sign our petition

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