The honest position: there is no general capital grant for commercial solar in the UK. What exists is an export payment, a tax position that depends on your circumstances, and a handful of targeted schemes.
Be sceptical of anyone offering a “commercial solar grant”. Ask them to name it and point you at the gov.uk page.
Last reviewed 4 Nov 2026.
The Smart Export Guarantee
Applies to installations up to 5000kW, which covers the overwhelming majority of commercial rooftop systems. Larger suppliers must offer at least one export tariff and they set their own rates.
For solar of 50kW or less, the installation must have been commissioned by an installer certified under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS), using MCS-certified products. Above 50kW, equivalent certification routes apply, and your installer should be clear about which applies to your project.
For most commercial installations the export payment is a secondary consideration, because the case rests on self-consumption. But it is not nothing and it should be in the model. See export payments.
Source: Ofgem, Smart Export Guarantee. Checked 4 Nov 2026.
Tax treatment
Capital allowances on plant and machinery, and the VAT position on a commercial installation, both depend on your circumstances, your business structure and what else you have claimed.
We are not going to give you a figure and nor should anyone selling you panels. Ask your accountant. It is a short conversation and it may change the answer materially.
What we will say: the domestic zero VAT rate on installed solar does not apply to commercial installations in the same way, so do not carry a domestic assumption into a commercial model.
Schemes that have closed
These still appear in older material and in some sales pitches:
- The Feed-in Tariff closed to new applicants after 31 Mar 2019
- The Renewable Heat Incentive closed in 31 Mar 2022
- Enhanced Capital Allowances for energy-saving technology under the former Energy Technology List scheme no longer operate as they did
If a proposal is built on any of these, it is out of date and so, probably, is everything else in it.
Where targeted support does exist
Sector and region-specific schemes come and go, often through local authorities, combined authorities or devolved administrations. They are usually small, usually time-limited and usually competitive. Your local growth hub or council business support team is the place to ask.
Great British Energy’s solar programme is worth mentioning only to say that it is not for you: it funds solar on schools, NHS sites and military sites, not on private commercial premises.
Network constraints, which matter more than incentives
For most commercial projects the binding issue is not funding, it is grid connection capacity.
A G99 application can take time, and in constrained areas the network operator may offer a lower capacity than you asked for, impose export limitation, or quote for reinforcement works that change the economics entirely.
Get the connection position established early It affects the programme and sometimes the viability. See grid connection.