Solar asset finance by sector
Every sector has a different roof, load profile and balance sheet — so the right finance structure differs too. Here's how we fund commercial solar across the UK's main commercial sectors, and where to read more about the installation side. Agriculture now has a dedicated page: solar finance for farms.
Agriculture & farms
Farms have large barn and shed roofs and a strong daytime load (refrigeration, grain drying, milking, irrigation). Hire purchase is popular because the allowances and export income stay on the farm balance sheet; some estates use sale-and-leaseback to release capital for diversification.
Manufacturing & factories
High, steady daytime process loads make factory solar pay back fast, so financing it is almost always cash-flow positive. Larger projects above the £1m AIA cap use the 50% first-year allowance, and we structure terms around the plant's output profile.
Warehousing & logistics
Vast roof areas and growing EV-fleet charging make logistics one of the strongest cases for commercial solar. An equipment loan can fund solar, battery and chargers in one facility; sale-and-leaseback suits operators wanting to free capital across a portfolio.
Offices & commercial property
Office demand aligns well with generation, and landlords value the EPC/MEES uplift. Multi-let buildings often need the lease and service-charge structure reviewed, which we coordinate with the funder.
Hotels & hospitality
Hospitality runs an evening-weighted load plus laundry, kitchens and (increasingly) guest EV charging. Asset finance keeps the project off the operator's capital budget while protecting against volatile energy prices.
Care homes & healthcare
Care providers often run on thin surpluses and 24/7 demand. An operating lease can suit where the organisation can't use capital allowances, turning the cost into a clean, deductible operating line.
SMEs & retail
Smaller commercial premises are well served by unsecured equipment loans, frequently backed by the Growth Guarantee Scheme. We match the term to the bill saving so the project funds itself.
Quick answer: the finance structure follows three things, and sector is a shorthand for all three — how much of your own generation you use during daylight, how your business is constituted for tax, and what you can offer as security. A high-daytime-load site (manufacturing, cold storage, data) makes the ownership routes look best, because every self-consumed unit is worth the retail rate you avoid rather than the export rate you are paid. A business that cannot use the tax relief this year — a loss-making period, or a partnership above the £1m Annual Investment Allowance cap, since the 50% first-year allowance is companies only — may do better on a lease, where the funder claims the allowances and prices them into the rentals. Tenanted premises and short leases change what a funder will lend against at all.
The structure follows the load profile
The common thread is that the finance route should follow the building's economics, not the other way round. A factory with a flat daytime load and a profitable balance sheet is a textbook hire purchase candidate; a care home that can't use the capital allowances may be better on an operating lease; a logistics group with a portfolio of owned systems might refinance to fund the next site. Whatever the sector, we model the routes against paying cash and a PPA, and structure the repayment below the energy saving.
Not sure which applies to you? Our finance options hub and calculator are good starting points.