Solar for shops, supermarkets and retail parks
| Site | Why it suits solar | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarket or food store | Chillers and freezers run all day; long opening hours, seven days | Roof structure, plant on the roof, the size of the supply |
| High street shop | Lighting, tills and heating in trading hours | Small or shared roofs, the lease, conservation areas |
| Retail park unit | Large flat or low-pitched roofs | Landlord consent, service charges, who pays the bill |
| Garden centre or farm shop | Long days, often with cafés, chillers and glasshouses | Glass roofs (panels go elsewhere), ground space |
Refrigeration and lighting in the day
Refrigeration is the retail load that suits solar best: it runs all day, every day, and it works harder in warm, sunny weather, when panels are producing. Lighting, heating, cooling and tills add to the daytime demand through opening hours, including weekends, which many other businesses don't have.
- Base load. Fridges and freezers overnight; solar covers the daytime share
- Peak. Opening hours, often matching the hours of most sunlight
- Weekends. Trading days, so weekend output is used, not exported
A year of half-hourly data shows the pattern for your store.
Find out what your store's roof and car park could do: book a free site survey.
Book a free site surveyWho owns the roof: landlords and tenants
Most retail units are leased. The landlord usually owns the roof and the tenant pays the electricity. That leaves three routes: the tenant installs with the landlord's consent; the landlord installs and sells the power to tenants; or a funder installs under a power purchase agreement. For landlords, the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard already requires an EPC of at least E on let commercial property in England and Wales unless an exemption is registered (GOV.UK), and solar is one measure an assessor can model. See solar on leased property and MEES and commercial EPCs.
Car parks and EV charging
A store car park is a second roof. A solar carport shelters shoppers and makes power next to where chargers would go. On chargers:
- Workplace Charging Scheme. Up to 75% of the cost, capped at £500 per socket for installations completed from 1 April 2026, up to 40 sockets across your sites, until 31 March 2027
- Who can use them. For a business, the scheme requires the chargepoints to be for staff or fleet, not customers
- Capital allowances. Equipment for EV charging points bought before April 2027 can qualify for a 100% first-year allowance
- Public charging. Chargepoints open to the public bring their own regulations
Sources: Workplace Charging Scheme, GOV.UK changes, GOV.UK first-year allowances. See also EV charging from solar.
Paying for it
A retailer that buys the system can usually claim capital allowances and reclaim the VAT. Loans, leases and PPAs spread or remove the upfront cost: see paying for commercial solar and payback.
Sources
The Workplace Charging Scheme grant listing, GOV.UK's April 2026 changes page, the first-year allowances page and the MEES guidance were read on 2 November 2026.