Commercial Solar

Business owners within the Brisbane region generally know of the general benefits of commercial solar. The details, however, can get confusing.

Commercial Solar Purchasing Guide – Brisbane

Taylor Energy has provided a comprehensive guide for anyone considering installing commercial solar on their business.

The article covers the following key aspects of solar ownership:

• A pricing guide on what a business would expect to pay for a commercial solar install in Brisbane.
• Common additional costs associated with installing commercial solar in Brisbane.
• How the high sunlight hours in Brisbane provides quantifiable benefit from your solar installation.
• Examples of commercial solar production values in the Brisbane area.
• A rebate guide. Brisbane is subject to more rebate than most of Australia!
• A finance guide – find out which solar-specific payment option best suits your Brisbane business.

Brisbane Commercial Solar Pricing Guide

The guide below shows ballpark figures on what you would expect to pay per kilowatt of commercial solar in Brisbane.

Taylor Energy is a high-volume commercial solar installer who maintain several partnerships with tier one solar hardware suppliers. The result is being first to market with the latest in cost-reducing solar technologies. An example is the new commercial solar inverters, which are now sized up to 100kW (rather than the usual 27.5kW or 50kW). This means less labor and less hardware!

Solar System Capacity	Pricing for Commercial Solar
30kW	$20,000-26,000
100kW	$72,000-86,000
500kW	$650,000-800,000

 

Installing solar on your business’s roof in Brisbane is cheaper than other states. This is due to the elevated amount of solar rebates available. This will be covered in more detail once a quote has been produced.

Solar Install Costs Included

Pre-Solar Install Engineering Report

For all commercial solar installs with an inverter capacity greater than 30kW, Taylor Energy completes a full structural assessment on the property roof. This ensures peace of mind that we will not install any solar panels on your roof without a comprehensive check.

The costs of this assessment are already included in all Taylor Energy quotes. When considering a solar purchase for your business with any supplier, make sure you ask your installer whether this price has been included.

Network Protection Hardware

In Brisbane, it is a legal requirement that all commercial solar installs with an inverter capacity above 30kW. As a business owner collecting quotes for roof-mounted solar – it pays to be mindful of installer recommended sizing. It would be prudent to question a recommended commercial solar system of 45kW for example – does the extra expense justify the small increase in capacity?

All Taylor Energy pricing has network protection built into their solar quoting.

Switchboard Upgrade

When costing up a solar system, it is almost impossible to assume any works without visiting the physical building.

Taylor Energy will always send a commercial solar expert to your business, prior to quoting a solar install.

How Brisbane’s sunny climate provides the most savings from your commercial solar install

Brisbane has one of the highest average sunlight hours of all the Australian Capital Cities. This is great for the performance of commercial solar panels, which generate 25% higher returns than, say Hobart.

Below are some real examples of installs, showing the solar production and hence dollar savings achieved:

Capacity of Solar Installation	Annual PV Production	Average Electricity Rate	Annual Savings from Solar
50kW	76,650kWh	$0.18	$14,026
Capacity of Solar Installation	Annual PV Production	Average Electricity Rate	Annual Savings from Solar
99.9kW	153,147kWh	$0.17	$25,728

 

How many rebates can you get with your commercial solar installation

Another benefit of the high sunlight hours in Brisbane is any commercial solar installation has more rebate associated with it.

In this section, we will just be dealing with the STC, or Small Scale Technology Certificate rebate. Any solar system in Brisbane below 100kW is eligible for this subsidy.

The table below gives the STC rebate amount for common solar system sizes. The actual dollar figure depends on the market value of the STCs at any given moment. In this example, the STC value has been assumed to be $35.00

Size of System	Eligible STC	Total Solar Rebate Claimable
20kW	320	$11,200
39kW	624	$21,840
80kW	1,280	$44,800
100kW	1,600	$56,000

 

Solar Financing Guide

With the high solar production and rebate values, most businesses that look into commercial solar energy are pleasantly surprised. In general, most commercial solar installed will be cashflow positive. This is certainly true if financed over a period of at least four to five years.

We will cover situations where it may make sense for your company to take one of three main solar finance options:

Situations where a business would pay outright for solar

• If the business has the cash available to outlay.
• Solar can be a way to write off a significant amount of tax. A commercial solar asset under $30,000 is eligible under the ATO instant tax-write off. The business must meet the criteria for this.
• The business wishes to avoid paying interest on any loans for solar.
• The business owner is time-poor and doesn’t want to spend time on paperwork and approvals.

A business may consider a lease to own on their solar when:

• They want to ensure they commercial solar investment does not tie up any capital.
• The business wishes to ensure all repayments are tax-deductible expenses.
• If the business is coming into summer months and desires an immediate cash injection. Taylor Energy offers lease options with 90-day payment terms. That’s 3 months of solar savings without repayments!

How a Business can get solar without “getting solar”

Many business owners are concerned about solar maintenance or uncertainty in the future. They often desire reduce their electricity bills while taking on as little risk as possible.

In this case a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) is an attractive option.

The features of a commercial solar PPA are;

• No solar ownership (unless the business decides to buy it later). The commercial solar system is owned and managed by someone else – they are just borrowing your roof.
• Long contract terms of at least 20 years are common.
• Guaranteed the PPA electricity rate will never increase over the life of the contract. Compare this to your current electricity retailer!