Commercial Blog

George Riley

Recent Posts

Solar Panel Grants for Businesses of up to £5,000

George Riley · 21 Apr 2022

In these uncertain times, there’s a renewed focus on jettisoning expensive fossil fuels and strengthening the UK’s energy independence. By investing in the right technology, companies can support this trend and reduce their energy bills.

Low Carbon Workspaces wants to aid businesses in this transition and is offering grants of up to £5,000 to invest in carbon-saving upgrades. This could be a grant for solar panels, battery storage, insulation or lighting.

Grants are available for SMEs based in Berkshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Milton Keynes and Northamptonshire, ranging from £1,000 - £5,000 to cover up to a third of the cost of energy improvements. The scheme is supported by the European Regional Development Fund.

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Topics: Financing, Solar PV

Workplace Charging Scheme Changes Coming in 2022

George Riley · 10 Nov 2021

As the 2030 deadline for buying new combustion engine vehicles looms, electric car sales are beginning to ramp up. But the greatest changes are happening in commercial fleets - in 2020, businesses bought twice as many EVs as private individuals.

This may in part be due to the many incentives for companies to go electric, such as tax breaks for company cars. There is also the long-running grant scheme for installing chargepoints, which is due for a shakeup early next year...

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Topics: Financing, EV charging

Solar Panel Business Rates and Super-deduction Tax Savings

George Riley · 23 Sep 2021

Times are tough on businesses right now, with a triple whammy of economic uncertainty due to Brexit, Covid and soaring energy prices. But amid the chaos are some silver linings that could mean now is the perfect time to invest in solar for your company and cut down on energy costs. Low interest rates and the government’s super-deduction can save you a lot of money on solar PV purchases, which normally pay back in 6-10 years and can also help your company reach net zero targets.

We’ll run you through the benefits of buying solar panels in the present climate, as well as highlighting the potential issues you should be aware of from the beginning, such as solar panel business rates and planning permission.

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Topics: Financing, Solar PV

Solar Panels for Hotels

George Riley · 25 Aug 2021

The return of holidays and foreign travel is on the horizon.

One way for hotels to cut energy costs is to invest in solar panels. Whitbread, the UK’s largest hospitality company, has rolled out solar PV across 20% of its Premier Inn hotels so far (much of it installed by Spirit!).

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Topics: Financing, Solar PV

Solar Panels for Warehouses and Distribution Centres

George Riley · 23 Sep 2020

Demand for warehouse space in the UK is booming this year, as more of us turn to online shopping while the virus keeps us away from the high streets. The proportion of retail done online (which was already on the rise) has skyrocketed:

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Topics: LED lighting, Solar PV

Spirit Installs Solar Panels at West Reservoir Centre

George Riley · 08 Sep 2020

We’re very excited to share our recent solar installation at West Reservoir Centre, an outdoor swimming facility in Hackney. It is the first installation in a new solar power scheme launched by Hackney Light and Power, as part of its mission to make the borough net zero carbon by 2040.

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Topics: Spirit Energy news, Solar PV

Solar Panels for Supermarkets

George Riley · 22 Jul 2020

For most people, a trip to the shops is about picking up the weekly groceries, with rarely a concern for the huge amount of power needed to keep the building running and the food fresh.

As electricity bills rise, shop owners are keen to cut costs where they can. Here’s why we’d recommend solar panels for supermarkets to save money on energy and provide some energy independence.

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Topics: Battery storage, LED lighting, Solar PV

Empty Premises? Upgrade Your Energy Systems!

George Riley · 09 Jun 2020

Offices, shops, schools and other premises across the country have been shuttered or only partially open since the lockdown. In an undoubtedly difficult time, many organisations are looking to save money. This could be the perfect opportunity to look at improvements to your company’s energy use, investing in efficient technology to reduce your energy costs in the long term.

Here are a few things we can help with to improve energy efficiency:

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Topics: Battery storage, Financing, LED lighting, Solar PV

Are Solar Trackers Worth It?

George Riley · 30 Aug 2019

We’ve recently done some modelling of the performance of solar tracking systems, but this can only tell you so much. What about how one would perform in the real world? Luckily we can answer that by looking at a solar tracker that we installed a few years ago...

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Topics: Solar PV

Free Solar Panels for Business: Meet Solar PPAs

George Riley · 19 Jun 2019

Is it possible to get free solar panels for businesses? A lot has changed since solar first started gaining popularity, with prices falling around 50% in the last decade and many of the initial subsidies like the Feed-in Tariff closed to new applicants. But there are still opportunities for companies to benefit from financed solar systems, the most promising of which are Solar PPAs.

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Topics: Financing, Solar PV