Solar panels for shops and retail in Ireland: power the fridges, lights and tills from your own roof
Independent advice on the SEAI 45% business grant, capital allowances, planning for shopfronts and forecourts, and grid connection – then quotes from SEAI-registered installers who size the system to your trading pattern.
Get Solar QuotesCheck Your Grant OptionsWhy solar suits retail
Retail is one of the easiest sectors to make solar work in, because most shops use most of their electricity while the sun is up. The question is less “will it pay?” and more “what size, on which roof, and who owns it?”.
Trading hours match solar hours
Lights, tills, HVAC, ovens and chillers all run through the trading day, seven days a week for many stores. That means a high share of solar output can be used on-site rather than exported, which is where the value is.
Refrigeration never stops
A UK study of supermarkets found refrigeration is the largest load, at 50–60% of electricity consumption (Evans et al., CIBSE, 2016). Chillers work hardest on warm, sunny afternoons – exactly when panels produce most.
Big, flat, unshaded roofs
Supermarkets, retail parks and shopping centres often have large flat or low-pitch roofs. In Ireland, Aldi announced rooftop solar for 44 stores (6.3 MW in total), with each 288-panel system expected to produce about 95,500 kWh a year, roughly 30% of a store’s needs (pv magazine, July 2025).
Retail energy-use profile
Every store is different, so the starting point is always 12 months of half-hourly data from your smart meter or supplier. Installers use it to match generation to your load. Typical retail loads include:
Food retail & convenience
- Refrigeration – open chillers, freezers, cold rooms, condensers: a 24/7 base load that rises in summer.
- Bakery & deli – ovens, hot cabinets and coffee machines, mostly morning to afternoon.
- Lighting and signage – all trading hours, often longer.
- HVAC – heating, cooling, air curtains at doors.
Non-food, centres & forecourts
- Fashion, hardware, DIY – lighting and HVAC dominate; loads fall away after closing.
- Shopping centres – landlord-side common-area lighting, lifts, escalators and HVAC, plus each tenant’s own supply.
- Forecourts – fuel pumps, shop chillers, hot food, car wash, canopy lighting and, increasingly, EV chargers.
Because the base load (fridges) runs overnight and in winter, solar won’t cover everything. Treat it as a way to cut the daytime units you buy, and pair it with efficiency measures such as LED lighting, doors on chillers and refrigeration controls. The SEAI Triple E Register lists efficient equipment in refrigeration and lighting categories that can also qualify for capital allowances.
Typical system sizes & roof, canopy and car park options
We don’t publish standard sizes or prices for retail – a corner shop and a 4,000 m² supermarket are different projects. Installers will assess:
Rooftop
The usual choice. Flat roofs use ballasted or fixed frames, often east–west to spread output across the day. Installers check structural capacity, roof membrane condition and warranty, plant and rooflights, and fire access routes.
Car park canopies
Solar carports add shade and shelter and can feed EV chargers, but they cost more than rooftop and usually need planning permission. Try our solar carport calculator for a first estimate.
Forecourt canopies
Fuel canopies are visible and unshaded but were rarely designed to carry panels. Structural checks and hazardous-area rules (below) come first.
Sizing is usually driven by your daytime base load, so most of the output is used on site. Bigger isn’t always better: oversizing pushes more power into export at lower value. See system options for panel and inverter types.
Grants & tax for retail solar
SEAI Non-Domestic Microgen Grant. Shops and retail businesses can apply. For new applications between 6 October 2026 and 6 July 2027 SEAI pays the lower of its grant table and 45% of your invoiced cost, up to €325,200. You must use an SEAI-registered installer, have a signed contract before applying, and not start work before your letter of offer. Only one solar PV system is supported per MPRN, the premises must have been built before 31 December 2024, and aid can’t be stacked with other grant schemes (SEAI terms). There is no extra grant for batteries.
Accelerated Capital Allowances. The ACA scheme for energy-efficient equipment (s.285A TCA 1997) is extended to 31 December 2030 (Revenue eBrief 028/2026). Photovoltaic systems and inverters are listed in SEAI’s Triple E “Heating and Electricity Provision” category. Ask your accountant how the grant affects your claim.
VAT. The 0% rate only applies to private dwellings and recognised schools. For shops, supply-and-install may be at the reduced rate (subject to the two-thirds rule) and VAT-registered traders can usually reclaim it (Revenue).
Checked 25 Oct 2026. Full detail in our solar grants guide.
| 1 kWp | €1,800 |
| 2 kWp | €3,600 |
| 3 kWp | €4,200 |
| 4–6 kWp | €4,800 |
| 7–20 kWp | €600 per kWp |
| 21–200 kWp | €400 per kWp |
| 201–1,000 kWp | €300 per kWp |
| Maximum grant | €325,200 |
For new applications from 6 Oct 2026 to 6 Jul 2027, SEAI pays the lower of the table amount and 45% of your invoiced cost (ex VAT). Your installer should show the grant calculation for your exact system size in writing. Checked 25 Oct 2026 – confirm on SEAI before you sign.
Other routes: PPAs and leases
Not every retailer wants to own the panels. Some providers offer a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), where they install and own the system and you buy the electricity it produces – Greenvolt Next, for example, says its PPAs require no upfront investment (pv magazine). Large chains also buy solar from off-site solar farms: Circle K signed a 12-year corporate PPA with three EDF Renewables solar farms to supply its 168 company-owned Irish sites (Circle K). For most independent shops, owning a rooftop system with the SEAI grant is simpler – but ask installers to compare.
Sector notes: shopping centres & forecourts
Shopping centres & retail parks
The roof usually belongs to the landlord, while each unit has its own supply. That raises practical questions to settle early:
- Which MPRN the system connects to (landlord’s common areas, or one tenant).
- Who owns, insures and maintains the panels, and what happens at lease end or re-roofing.
- Whether roof access, structural and fire requirements are covered by the lease.
- How savings are shared, e.g. through service charges or an agreed electricity price.
Get the landlord’s written consent before you apply for a grant.
Petrol forecourts
The HSA says service stations must be zoned by a competent person according to the likelihood of explosive vapour, and electrical equipment in a hazardous zone must be suitably rated and certified. Electrical installations must be tested and certified every three years (HSA guidance).
For solar, that means installers should work from your Explosion Protection Document and zoning drawings, keep inverters, isolators and cabling out of hazardous zones where possible, and coordinate with whoever certifies your installation. Canopy panels also need a structural check.
Planning permission for shops and retail
Rooftop solar on business premises is exempted development under Class 56(e), introduced by S.I. No. 493 of 2022 (in force 5 Oct 2022), subject to conditions. Key points:
- No overall roof-area limit outside a Solar Safeguarding Zone (SSZ). Inside one, the total is capped at 300 m² and you must notify the council within 4 weeks of starting.
- On pitched roofs panels sit no more than 15 cm off the roof and at least 50 cm from the edges; on flat roofs up to 1.2 m high and 2 m in from the edge.
- The electricity must be used primarily within the premises.
- Wall-mounted panels on business premises aren’t covered by the exemption.
- Free-standing arrays: up to 75 m², 2.5 m high, not in front of the building’s front wall. Most car park canopies exceed this.
- No hazardous glint or glare.
Town-centre shops: watch for ACAs
Exemptions can be lost in an Architectural Conservation Area or on a protected structure. In 2026 Cork County Council decided that 12 panels (24 m²) on the front roof of a pharmacy in Macroom’s North Square were not exempt, citing the ACA, incomplete drawings and no glint and glare screening report (Cork Co. Co. ref. D/243/26). If your shop is on a main street, ask the council for a Section 5 declaration before committing.
Sources: S.I. 493/2022, Fieldfisher summary. Not legal advice.
Grid connection
Up to 6 / 11 kW (NC6)
Micro-generation: below about 6 kW single-phase or 11 kW three-phase. The installer notifies ESB Networks on form NC6 (CRU).
Up to 50 kVA (NC7)
Mini-generation on three-phase runs from 11 kVA to 50 kVA. It needs an application, a €1,041.81 fee incl. VAT and a technical study, with offers in about 8–10 weeks. Don’t install until the connection agreement is signed (ESB Networks).
Larger stores
Above 50 kVA and up to 200 kVA is small-scale generation; above 200 kVA uses ESB Networks’ ECP process (ESB Networks). Export can’t exceed your maximum import capacity; some sites use an export limiting scheme (ELS).
Exported surplus is paid under the Clean Export Guarantee at a rate your supplier sets. In retail, export is usually small because the store uses most of the output.
Batteries
Because shops use most solar output during trading hours, batteries are often a lower priority than in homes. They can make sense where there’s a big midday surplus (e.g. on a Sunday or with short hours), to cut peak demand charges, or for resilience. SEAI’s business grant doesn’t add anything for batteries, so ask installers for payback with and without one. More in our battery advice.
EV charging
Customer and staff EV chargers add daytime load that soaks up solar, and car park canopies can host both. Check your maximum import capacity first, because chargers plus solar can trigger a supply upgrade. Load management can help balance the two.
How it works
Solar123 is an independent advice and quote-matching service. We don’t install; with your consent, we pass your enquiry to SEAI-registered installers who survey and quote.
Type of shop, roof type and size, opening hours, whether you own or lease, and your annual units if you have them.
Grant, allowances, planning, grid and landlord questions, so you know what to ask installers.
They check the roof and supply, model output against your half-hourly data and quote in writing.
You sign with your chosen installer, apply to SEAI, get your letter of offer and ESB Networks agreement, then install. See how it works.
Choosing a retail solar installer: checklist
- Registered with SEAI for non-domestic solar PV.
- Uses your half-hourly data, not just roof area, to size the system.
- Structural survey of the roof or canopy, with membrane warranty checked.
- Clear plan for working around trading hours and customer safety.
- Handles NC6/NC7 or small-scale applications and any export limiter.
- For forecourts: works to your hazardous-area zoning and EPD.
- Checks planning: SSZ, ACA, glint and glare, Section 5 if needed.
- Safe Electric registered; certificate at handover.
- Written panel, inverter and workmanship warranties and a monitoring plan.
- Like-for-like quotes – use our quote comparison guide.
Retail solar FAQs
How much can solar save my shop?
It depends on your system cost, grant, how much output you use on site and your tariff. We don’t quote generic savings. As one sourced example, Aldi expects its Irish rooftop systems to cover roughly 30% of each store’s electricity. Ask installers to model your own data.
Can a shop get the SEAI solar grant?
Yes. Retail businesses can apply for the SEAI Non-Domestic Microgen Grant: currently the lower of SEAI’s table and 45% of cost, up to €325,200, for new applications until 6 July 2027.
I rent my unit. Can I still get solar?
Possibly, but you’ll need the landlord’s written consent and an agreement on ownership, maintenance and what happens at lease end. In shopping centres the landlord may prefer to install on common-area supplies.
Do I need planning permission?
Most rooftop systems on business premises are exempt under Class 56(e) if you meet the conditions. Watch out for Solar Safeguarding Zones (300 m² cap), ACAs and protected structures. Car park canopies usually need permission.
Can solar go on a petrol station canopy?
Sometimes. It depends on the canopy’s structure and the site’s hazardous-area zoning. Equipment must not be placed in zones unless suitably rated and certified, so involve your competent person early.
Will installation disrupt trading?
Rooftop work is mostly out of customers’ sight, but there will be scaffolding, deliveries and a short shutdown to connect. Agree times and a safety plan with the installer.
Should I add a battery?
Often not at first in retail, as stores use most of their output. It can help with weekend surplus or peak demand. SEAI doesn’t grant-aid batteries for businesses.
See also our FAQ, industries we service and hotels & hospitality.
Get your retail solar quote today
Tell us about your store and we’ll connect you with SEAI-registered installers who’ll survey your roof and quote. Or call 089 450 4544
Sending an enquiry is not an official grant application.