Benefits Of Commercial Solar For Businesses
If you’re a business owner I’m sure that you are fed up of extremely high energy bills. I’m sure that you are sick to death with rising energy prices that are out of your control.
Well, I’m also sure you are trying to look for solutions to your problems…
All across the world, large government corporations and businesses are starting to make the move to solar panels. This is because renewable energies provide so many benefits to the owner.
For all you know, solar panels could be the solution to maximising the growth of your business. Or it could help reduce operational costs so much that it free’s up your debt.
Either way, businesses are starting to see the ‘light’ with solar energy and making a move towards a greener, cheaper future. So, if you are still unsure about solar for your business, I ask you to take a read though these 12 benefits of commercial solar panels.
If you know that you are ready for solar panels, then feel free to take a read on my 6 best commercial solar panels for your business, and get help choosing the right panel for you.
Table of Contents
How to know if your business can benefit from commercial solar
Are your energy bills high?
To find out if you are able to benefit from commercial solar first you must understand your energy bill.
We can all agree that if you already have low energy bills, solar may not be the best investment for you.
However, if your business suffers from high energy costs, commercial solar panels may be your solution.
Here are the main things to consider:
How much money are you currently spending per year on electricity?
You can work this out by adding up your monthly bills, or by requesting an annual report from your energy provider.
Sometimes it’s best to even grab 5-10 years worth of energy bills. You are more than likely to see an increase in energy costs over the year. This is down to rising rates from energy providers and rising costs across Australia.
What size system can you fit on your property roof?
Now this is going to be important. The reason it’s important is because if you cannot fit the right size system on your roof, you may not see enough reduction in your energy costs. Therefore commercial solar will not be a wise investment for your business.
When do you use the most power?
Additionally, finding out when you use the most energy can help you understand if commercial solar is your next best move.
By knowing when you use the most energy, you can work out what type of system would be best for your business. For businesses that use a lot of energy at night, it will be best to look into systems with solar storage available.
If you are using energy during the day then it might be best to get a high end system that can produce enough k/ws to power your property each day without pulling energy from the grid.
What are your future goals or objectives?
Are you looking to grow your business? If so then maybe commercial solar can help you. By reducing your operational costs it will free up cash flow and allow you to reinvest into high profit areas of your business.
However, you may be looking to move property in the next 5 years or so. This would suggest that potentially solar panels may be better suited at your new property.
Although in saying this, they could help by increasing your property value. They also produce a clean return on investment which could help towards future growth and investments.
Do commercial solar panels make sense for every size of business… even small and medium?
Let’s look back to where solar panels were just a few years ago. High priced and really struggling to provide genuine savings for businesses and homeowners. Now, it’s a different story.
Commercial solar panels have come a long way and they don’t just benefit big businesses anymore either.
Just recently, the International Energy Agency (IEA) announced that solar power is the cheapest form of electricity in the world. If homeowners can see much incredible savings from solar systems, then why not small businesses.
Debunking the myth, is solar good for small businesses?
Of course solar is good for small businesses. If you are operating your business every day, energy bills can add up regardless of your size.
Given that the return on investment has become faster and faster, commercial solar panels would be a good idea.
Whatever the size of your business, if you are able to minimise your energy bills then it’s going to help.
How much energy can you generate with commercial solar?
EXAMPLE:
If we take a sunny location and a 10kw system, on average it could produce around 45kWh of energy every day. With a 100kw system, you could produce 450kWh of energy per day as well.
However, this will all be dependent on your location, the performance of your solar panels, the tilt/orientation and time of day.
Here is a table below showing on average, how much energy you could produce from commercial solar panels.
Solar System Size | Average Daily Generation (kWh) | Annual Solar Generation (kWh) |
10kW | 45 | 16,425 |
39kW | 175 | 64,058 |
70kW | 315 | 114,975 |
100kW | 450 | 164,250 |
(Please note: this is based on our location in Brisbane, Australia)
12 proven Logical benefits of commercial solar panels
Significantly reduce your energy bills
We all know that solar panels will significantly reduce your energy bills… So why not get them on a scale for your business.
If you have high energy bills, it makes complete sense to invest in commercial solar panels. By installing solar at your business, you are producing your own power.
When producing your own power you will no longer be buying energy from the grid. Because the energy generated from your solar panels is free, you are no longer paying high rates to power your business.
This means you are significantly reducing the money you pay each month on energy to keep your business running. With this spare cash, you are saving money and can reinvest it into your business.
This is probably the most popular benefit of commercial solar power, and why business owners move towards installing commercial solar panels.
Reduce greenhouse gasses and carbon footprint
Another massive benefit of commercial solar power is that it’s renewable energy. The energy generated by your solar panels is clean, and harmless to the environment.
When the sun hits your solar panel, the cells quickly convert the UV light into energy. This conversion does not create any harmful gasses or emissions unlike fossil fuels being burnt.
Therefore when you install commercial solar panels you are reducing your carbon footprint. By doing this, you are helping the world and standing against climate change.
We need to act quickly if we are to see climate change reversed. You can rest easy knowing that you are doing your part in preventing rising sea levels, increased temperatures and toxic pollution.
For some people this is a huge reason why they will install solar panels at their business.
Increase your property value
Don’t worry, once you buy solar panels and install them at your property you will still see their value from years to come. That’s right, they will increase the value of your property by a decent amount.
Due to the expensive nature of solar panels they do not lose their value quickly. Additionally, because they can provide a business with so much value like lower operational costs, return on investments, low maintenance it makes them a big asset to your business property.
This means if the time ever comes that you need to upsize or expand your business you will get your money back from your solar panels. Not only this, but because commercial solar panels are becoming more and more popular it’s common for buyers to favour businesses with solar over those without.
You can get steps ahead when you install solar panels to your business property and that’s another great benefit of commercial solar power.
Improve your public image to eco--friendly
Something that goes a long way in business is your public image. Having a negative public image may damage your reputation and ultimately lose you customers.
The benefit of installing commercial solar panels for your public image is that it shows you as supportive, considerate and eco-friendly of your community.
Also, you can promote your stance against climate change which may lead to an increase in customers and sales. When people know that you are supporting your local community with clean, renewable energy then your business will become more popular.
Local support is important as these may be your lifetime customers. Solar panels for your business is an excellent way to show that your business supports the community, and set you aside from other businesses in your market.
Price per K/W is decreasing every year
Believe it or not but the price of commercial solar is actually decreasing every year. In fact, recently in 2020 the International Energy Agency announced that solar power is the cheapest electricity in the world, in all of history!
They even predicted that by 2050 solar energy will decrease in price by around 60 cents over the next few decades. It’s also suggested that the IEA have found that solar energy is 20-50% cheaper than previously thought.
This can also be shown by the decrease in the price of a solar system over the past 10 years. Essentially this means that commercial solar is becoming more and more affordable.
All types of businesses can take advantage of the benefits of commercial solar panels due to it coming down in price. By solar panels being more affordable, it also means business owners will see quicker returns on the investment.
You may also see bigger returns as well. Let’s all agree, solar power has a very bright future ahead.
Government incentives and solar rebates
One of the biggest benefits of installing commercial solar are the rewards that come with it. Provided by the government, business owners can take advantage of incentives and solar rebates.
Incentives and rebates are basically discounts or money back schemes offered by the government to entice business owners to install commercial solar. They work by reducing the upfront cost of solar making it more affordable.
Well, of course this is going to be successful because who doesn’t want a financial incentive for getting solar panels. These programs offered by the government have helped thousands of businesses install solar panels.
Without going into too much detail there are incentives for asset write offs, Small-scale Technology Certificates and depreciation deductions. There are also COVID19 stimulus packages available as well.
This shows that the government understands the benefits of commercial solar, and wants to promote it by rewarding businesses when they install solar panels.
For more on solar rebates see Victoria or Queensland.
Tax benefits for business
As well as government rebates, business owners can take advantage of the tax benefits that come with installing solar panels at your business.
Commercial solar provides a 20 year tax benefit for anyone who is eligible for depreciation. For smaller businesses (under $2 million) there is an accelerated depreciation for any purchased under $20,000.
It’s also become available that the instant asset write off can be claimed straight away, rather than over a number of years. Having tax benefits like these help business owners buy commercial solar panels.
It’s a huge benefit for both the government and business owners.
Again it shows that countries have realised the benefits of solar power and are now pushing them to improve their country and help the environment.
Return on investment
We certainly cannot forget one of the biggest benefits of commercial solar power. It provides you with a return on investment.
Although the initial cost of your solar system will be expensive, you will get the money back. It works through the money that you save from your energy bills and operational costs.
By generating your own energy, you no longer buy power from the grid. This means you will have a significant amount of saved money each month.
Once you have saved the same amount of money it cost you to install your commercial solar system, you have paid off your system. Any money that you save after this is profit for your business.
Given that commercial solar is becoming more affordable the return on investment is bigger, and comes quicker. Having this extra profit each month can seriously grow your business. If you invest it into high profit areas like sales and marketing you will see your business expand.
Therefore, it makes a lot of sense for businesses to invest in commercial solar because they will eventually see their money back plus profit.
Lower operational costs
Lowering your operational costs can be one of the hardest things to do for businesses. Certainly if it costs you a lot of money to operate your business.
We can all agree that having a more efficient business makes the most sense. This is exactly what commercial solar can provide for you. Due to the energy that you create being free, your business can instantly lower the cost of running and become more profitable.
Most businesses will require power every day, and some even throughout the night. Lowering your operational costs could be the difference in growing your business or staying the same size.
The way commercial solar lowers your operational costs is through reducing your power bills and freeing up cash flow. This cash flow can then be re-invested into your business to reduce costs even more.
Feed-in tariff to sell excess energy
Years ago feed-in tariffs were mostly common for residential solar systems because businesses consume most of their energy during daylight hours.
However, with solar panel technology becoming more advanced and systems being bigger in size, commercial feed-in tariffs are getting more popular.
It’s hard to believe, but you can actually sell any excess power you generate back to the grid for around 12c/kw. This can then provide you with some extra profit from your commercial solar system and help pay it off quicker.
It can also help provide even greater return on investment. Not only this, but the energy you sell will get used by your local community.
Therefore you are powering your local community with clean, renewable solar energy. You are helping the environment even more by selling your excess energy. This is another huge benefit of commercial solar provided by the government.
Protection against rising electricity costs
As you probably know, electricity prices are constantly on the rise.
Being in Australia, we boast some of the highest energy prices in the world. What’s even more frustrating, is that we have no say in the matter. We are simply locked into these energy contracts which at any moment can be increased.
This is a situation no business owner wants to be in. Shackled to the ever rising prices of electricity. The solution? Commercial solar panels.
When you install your solar system you are breaking the bond between yourself and forever rising energy prices. This is because you are now generating your own, free energy.
No-one owns the sun, therefore no one can put a price on its energy. Commercial solar can provide you with the benefit of never having to worry about rising prices of electricity again.
Low maintenance
Finally, commercial solar requires next to no maintenance. It’s recommended it give your solar panels a clean once every few years but other than that, they won’t require any maintenance.
Given that the upfront cost of solar is so high, it’s a great benefit that commercial solar panels don’t require extra maintenance. Most solar panels come with long lasting warranties of above 10+ years. They are built to last and perform.
Once you have made your initial investment, you won’t have to worry about regularly fixing or putting money into your solar system. You can leave them to perform as guaranteed by your warranty.
This is good because maintenance costs money. Solar panels would be less popular if they required maintenance and extra money spent on them each year.
Having low maintenance makes them attractive for business owners.
Are commercial solar panels worth it?
It comes to the final question you are all asking. Are commercial solar panels worth it?
Well, we will try and break it down as simply as possible.
Commercial solar will slash your energy bills. Seriously, it will change your business for the better.
It can also provide you with lower operational costs.
Don’t forget you can take advantage of government incentives and feed in tariffs to speed up your return on investment.
Given that the price is affordable and becoming cheaper every year, it’s certainly a good time to invest.
From this, we would say that commercial solar is DEFINITELY worth your investment.
For any size business as well.
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Written By:
Luke Cove
Managing Director
Lightning Solar & Electrical
1 thought on “Commercial Solar For Businesses”
I would like to thank the author for explaining the commercial solar benefits so informatively.