Commercial Solar Panel Installation

Commercial Solar Across Cheshire, Shropshire, Merseyside and North Wales

We install commercial solar PV within roughly a 50 mile radius of Chester. That covers industrial estates across Cheshire and Merseyside, manufacturing and agricultural sites throughout Shropshire, and business parks across North East Wales. Working regionally is not a limitation on a commercial job, it is the point: a system that needs a site visit for an inverter fault is far better served by an installer 40 minutes away than by a national contractor who subcontracts the callout.

What Commercial Solar Costs and When It Pays Back

Commercial solar pays back faster than domestic solar for one reason: a working building consumes its own generation during daylight rather than exporting it. Every unit you self consume is worth the full price you pay your supplier, while every unit exported is worth a fraction of that. The more of your load sits between 9am and 5pm, the better the numbers look.

Generation figures are for the North West and North Wales, which sits at roughly 850 to 950 kWh per kWp installed a year. Where self consumption is high, payback on a commercial system typically lands between four and seven years, against a panel life of 25 years and an inverter life of 10 to 15. Solar PV normally falls into the special rate pool for capital allowances rather than the main pool, so the tax treatment differs from most plant and machinery. Your accountant should confirm what applies to your business in the current tax year, but it is worth asking the question before you sign anything.

We Size to Your Load, Not to Your Roof

The easiest way to sell a bigger commercial system is to fill the roof. It is rarely the right answer. We start from your half hourly consumption data, which your supplier will provide free of charge, and model generation against your actual daytime demand. That tells us the point at which extra panels stop displacing bought electricity and start exporting it cheaply. Sometimes the answer is a full roof, and sometimes it is 60% of one plus battery storage. Either way you see the modelling, not just a headline saving.

G98, G99 and the DNO Application

Anything beyond a very small system needs the network operator’s agreement, and this is where commercial projects most often stall. G98 covers systems up to 3.68 kW per phase, which a three phase supply can notify after installation. Above that you are into G99, which means an application to the DNO and formal approval before commissioning, with a decision typically taking several weeks. On constrained parts of the network the operator may offer a reduced export limit rather than a refusal, which is usually workable because a commercial site is consuming most of its generation anyway. We handle the application, the export limitation settings and the commissioning paperwork as part of the project rather than leaving it with your facilities manager.

Roofs We Work With

Most commercial roofs in this region are profiled metal sheet, built up felt or single ply membrane, and each needs a different mounting approach. Profiled sheet takes non penetrative clamps fixed to the seam. Membrane roofs usually take a ballasted or adhered system so the waterproofing is never breached. Older asbestos cement sheet is common on agricultural and light industrial buildings and cannot take a conventional array, so we assess it honestly rather than quoting around it. Every project starts with a structural check of the roof loading, because a 250 kWp array is a permanent addition to the building.

Sectors We Install For

Manufacturing and light industrial units, where daytime machinery load matches the generation curve almost exactly. Agricultural buildings across Shropshire and Cheshire, where grain drying, ventilation and refrigeration run through the day. Care homes, which have an unusually flat and constant load. Sports and social clubs, where the roof is large, the budget is tight and the payback case is the difference between doing it and not. Offices, schools and workspace providers. Warehousing and distribution, where roof area is rarely the constraint.

Work We Have Already Done

The quickest way to judge a commercial installer is what they have already commissioned locally. Ours includes a 30 kWp installation for Obsidian Flexible Workspaces, a commercial array for Alphabond Technologies, work for Edsential in Ellesmere Port, and club installations at Vicars Cross Golf Club, Chester Golf Club, Shrewsbury Cricket Club, Christleton Cricket Club and Davenham Cricket Club. We have also delivered commercial EV charging in Altrincham. The full set is on our case studies page.

How a Commercial Project Runs

A free energy audit and site survey, including a look at your half hourly data and the roof structure. A modelled proposal showing generation, self consumption, export and payback rather than a single saving figure. The DNO application where the system needs one. Installation, usually scheduled around your operating hours. Commissioning, MCS certification, handover documentation and monitoring set up so you can see what the array is doing. We are MCS certified and a NICEIC approved contractor, and the same accreditations cover commercial work as domestic.

Businesses across Cheshire, Shropshire, Merseyside and North Wales can book a free energy audit on 01244 848 688. We will tell you honestly whether your roof and your load make the numbers work.