Solar PV For Businesses

Businesses installing solar panels can avail of grants that range from €2,700 to €162,600.

This support is available through the non domestic microgen grant (NDMG) scheme.

The specific grant amount a business can avail of is based on the standard output of the system.

The maximum grant value of €162,600 is reached with a 1000kWp system.

Smaller commercial solar PV systems have lower likely grant values.

SEAI gives example grant values for varying solar PV system sizes, including:

Source: SEAI

While not necessarily specific to solar PV, several other business grants are available for companies interested in becoming more energy efficient.

These business grants include:

• EXEED Grant Scheme.
• Energy Efficiency Obligation Scheme.
• Accelerated Capital Allowance.
• Support Scheme for Renewable Heat.
• Support Scheme for Energy Audits.
• Energy Contracting Support Scheme.
• Energy Contracting.

Details about each grant is available on seai.ie.

The cost for a business to install solar panels depends on many factors including the number of solar panels required, solar panel size, panel type and quality, overall system requirements (e.g. batteries, hot water diverters), available grants, and more.

Ultimately, the cost of installing a solar PV system varies from business to business.

But for some context, the starting price for solar panels for homes typically start from around €8,000 for a 2.6kWp system before any grant subsidies.

Step1. Start with SEAI registered commercial contractors

SEAI registration helps ensure best practice, tax and insurance compliance.

The SEAI website will help you find registered commercial contractors. A good place to start is their “Find Grants and Contractors” page.

Complete lists of registered contractors may be available, depending on the specific service.

For example, the complete list of SEAI registered solar installers, including Ohk energy (may still be listed as NRG Panel, Energy Panel and/or JFW Renewables), can be found here – be sure to select “non domestic” to see commercial solar installers.

To avail of SEAI grants, installations must be completed by an SEAI registered installer.

While SEAI registration helps ensure contractors meet certain conditions, SEAI does not endorse any specific contractor.

More due diligence is required.

Step 2. Check for ISO accreditation

ISO accreditation indicates a commercial contractor’s commitment to maintaining high standards in operations and management practices.

This helps ensure you choose a partner that’s reliable, has consistent quality, and adheres to best practices. In turn, this reduces the risk of a subpar installation and after-sales support.

Here at Ohk energy, we are proud of our triple ISO accreditation.

Step 3. Find references and reviews

Reviews provide insights into a commercial contractor’s service quality, which helps ensure you choose the best partner for your business.

Negative reviews, or even hidden reviews, can indicate potential issues or concerns.

Here at Ohk energy, we’re proud of our exceptionally high review ratings.

Ohk energy is a new brand. While some customers have already published independent reviews, the volume isn’t as high as you’d expect for a company as large and as active.

As of writing, JFW Renewables scores 4.9/5 from 395 independent customer reviews on Google Reviews.

NRG Panel scores 4.6/5 from 498 reviews on Trustpilot, and 4.8/5 from 316 reviews on Google Reviews.

Step 4. Ask about warranties and business partners

Additionally, to find the best commercial contractor for you ask about:

• Their warranties (product and workmanship warranties, e.g., Ohk energy offers 5-year workmanship warranties and use the highest quality products with market leading warranties, like a 25-year product warranty on solar panels).
• Their business partners (e.g. Ohk energy are Electric Ireland’s & Harvey Norman’s official partner).

This, combined with the previous steps above, will help you identify the best commercial contractor for your business.

The best solar panels for businesses are high-efficiency, Tier1, N-Type, bifacial, monocrystalline panels with a class A fire rating, and long-term product and performance warranty.

The solar panels must also be suitable for the Irish climate, so wind tolerance, operational temperature, etc., must be considered.

Also, in addition to solar panels, the complete solar system must be considered.

Here at Ohk energy, we install the best solar panels and complete solar solutions, as standard.

There are planning permission exemptions for solar panels on rooftops of businesses, industrial buildings, farms, community and educational buildings, along with several other buildings.

More details on planning permission exemptions can be found here.

In short, it depends. The exact duration varies from business to business. Factors such as the type of system, number of panels, building size, roof type, etc. all impact installation duration.

For some context, a small commercial solar installation can take roughly the same amount of time as it does for a typical domestic installation – these can take less than a day with minimum disruption.

Larger projects take longer to complete. However, we can schedule an increase in manpower which can reduce installation times.

We can work with you on timelines and provide a more accurate estimation of duration. Complete the quote form above to see how long it’d take to get your business running on free clean energy.