Commercial And Business World Seek Solar Panels To Bring Down Overhead

Increasing energy prices, advanced technology, and lower costs have led to  500% growth in the number of commercial buildings now installing renewable sources of energy, primarily solar panels.

During the preceding three years, there has been a 400 percent increase in the number of companies turning to solar, says Huon Hoogesteger, the originator of Smart Commercial Solar, one of Australia’s biggest providers of corporate solar devices.

“We’re now installing five times the number of solar panels we were installing three years ago,” Mr. Hoogesteger stated.

He said demand had been steadily growing over the past three years when the entire commercial market totaled 200 megawatts.

“Now this year, we are going to complete one gigawatt, and the increased demand has meant our company has been growing by 100 percent year-on-year as more and more companies realize that traditional energy costs are outside their control.”

Rises in electricity costs had hit domestic users hard, with 25 percent of local consumers now having some form of solar energy capability, reports Tony Crabb, national executive of study at commercial real estate agents Cushman & Wakefield.

But it’s only in the past few years that commercial users have remained affected and are scanning for new power sources.

“It’s been a perfect storm with the cost of energy and electricity prices rising, solar technology improving as well as getting cheaper all the time, and government incentives and low-interest loans,” Mr. Crabb stated.

“Solar now increasingly makes sense and stacks up as a business case and is being installed often less for environmental reasons and more because of cost factors."

Industrial Solar Businesses

“We’re now seeing more and more of it in industrial and retail premises where you’ve got very large roof spaces and an underlying energy need. If you have temperature-controlled areas in a warehouse, they’ll use a lot of energy and shopping centers tend to be airconditioned and have supermarkets with chilled food areas.”

One of Australia’s biggest institutional fund managers QIC, with a national retail portfolio, has realized the potential of solar, with a $200 million investment from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) into upgrading its stores’ energy production.

CEFC’s chief administrator Ian Learmonth said Australian purchasing centers accounted for 36 percent of commercial building energy consumption and were a comparatively untapped opportunity to save energy and decrease carbon emissions.

Solar Powered Shopping Centers

“Shopping centers have substantial energy needs with large enclosed malls and retail areas necessitating ‘year-round’ heating and air conditioning supply,” he stated.

“Our finance will demonstrate how energy efficiency technologies and renewable energy sources like solar can make a difference in leading Australia towards net zero carbon buildings.”

Are you a business owner looking to bring down overhead with solar panels? If you want to find out what solar panels are right for you, go to HahaSmart.com and try our price checker tool. You can see how much you can save over the next 20 years by going solar, and we can help find local solar installers who can help. For more information relating to going solar, don't forget to visit our solar blog section for more handy guides and articles.