It is often cheaper to simply put solar panels on the roof of large buildings

August 09, 2023

Rival companies that spoke to the BBC also described high demand for solar car park canopies.

Praxia Energy, based in Spain, supplies about 3MW of car park solar installations in the UK each year and says it expects this to grow tenfold by 2028.

A spokeswoman for Veolia says the company recently installed a 1.1MW solar canopy system in the car park of Eastbourne Hospital and the firm has registered increased demand for solar infrastructure in the UK lately.

Solarsense, a company in Clevedon, says it has also received rising enquiries in recent months.

Tim Evans, chief executive of 3ti, argues that, in the past, the UK has been slow to pursue this technology in comparison with countries on the continent. "We are quite some way behind the curve," he says.

There are some flagship examples already in place, though. The largest solar car park installed to date in the UK is the one at the Bentley car factory in Crewe, which has a peak capacity of 2.7MW.

Mr Evans says he is currently exploring four new potential projects with clients that could exceed 5MW peak capacity.

Solar panels in car parks can also power electric vehicle (EV) charging. This works especially well at offices, where employees' cars are parked outside for many hours. Shopping centres, football stadiums, leisure centres and cinemas are also suitable venues, since cars tend to be parked for two hours or more to allow sufficient charging, says Mr Evans.

But the steel supports required for many solar canopies do add to the cost. It is often cheaper to simply put solar panels on the roof of large buildings, such as supermarkets. Mr Evans estimates that rooftop solar yields electricity at about 9p per kWh currently, versus 14p or 15p per kWh from panels in car parks.

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Mr. AILVKE

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