Paying for Business Solar: Four Routes Compared

Commercial solar finance is rarely the bottleneck — every UK business installing solar in 2026 has at least three viable routes, and most have all four. The harder question is which route fits your specific corporation tax position, capex headroom, balance-sheet preferences and time horizon. This page lays out the four main routes with a side-by-side comparison, real worked examples, and clear guidance on when each fits. For the page covering route mechanics in full detail, see finance options. For the SEO-targeted variant of our cost page, see commercial solar costs.

The four main commercial solar finance routes in 2026

Every UK business looking at commercial solar in 2026 picks one of four primary financing structures. The choice changes the cash-flow profile, the balance-sheet treatment, the IRR and the long-term ownership outcome — but it doesn't change the underlying solar asset's economic value. Each route below is explained with mechanics, indicative pricing, balance-sheet treatment, and the business profile it suits.

1. Cash purchase plus 100% AIA

The simplest route and the strongest financial outcome. The business pays the full capex from working capital or retained profit, takes ownership of the asset on commissioning, and claims 100% Annual Investment Allowance against trading profits in the year the system goes live. For a profitable UK limited company at the 25% main rate of corporation tax, AIA delivers year-one tax relief equal to 25% of the install cost — effectively reducing net capex by 25%. Cash-purchase projects typically deliver 16–18% IRR over 25 years, simple payback of 5–7 years on gross capex (4–5 years on AIA-adjusted net capex), and 25-year NPV of £150k–£900k+ depending on system size. Best fit: profitable Ltd Co with capex headroom and sufficient corporation tax position to absorb the relief. See capital allowances on solar panels for the full tax-relief mechanics.

2. Asset finance (hire purchase / lease purchase)

The most popular route for UK SMEs in 2026. Asset finance, sometimes called hire purchase or lease purchase, lets you spread the capex across 5–7 years of fixed monthly payments, with title transferring at the end of the term. The lender pays the installer in stages; the lender owns the asset during the finance period; you take ownership at the end. Critical HMRC point: asset finance is treated as a hire purchase contract for capital allowances purposes, so you (the buyer) are treated as owning the asset from day one and claim 100% AIA in the year the system is commissioned — even though you're paying for it over 5–7 years. The rate depends on the lender and the credit profile of the borrower. The lender sets the monthly payment. Whether the monthly bill saving from solar generation exceeds the monthly finance payment depends on the rate the lender sets and on how much of the generation is used on site. Best fit: SMEs without capex headroom but with reliable trading and corporation tax position to absorb AIA.

3. Operating lease

The lessor (a finance company or specialist solar lessor) buys the system, owns it during the lease term, and you make fixed monthly lease payments over 7–10 years. At end of term you typically have an option to purchase the system at fair market value, return it, or extend the lease. Operating leases qualify for off-balance-sheet treatment under IFRS 16 small-lease provisions (for leases with values below £5,000 per asset or terms below 12 months) — though the £5,000 threshold means most commercial solar leases will be on-balance-sheet. The lessor claims capital allowances on the asset (you cannot claim AIA), and you deduct the monthly lease payment as a trading expense. The lease rate depends on the lessor and the credit profile of the business. The lessor sets the monthly payment. Best fit: businesses that prefer a finance-team-friendly fixed monthly cost without ownership complexity, or businesses where the lessor's tax position improves overall economics through allowance optimisation.

4. Power Purchase Agreement (PPA)

The PPA route is genuinely zero-capex. A third-party PPA provider finances, installs, owns and operates the solar PV system on your roof, and sells the generated electricity back to you at a contracted unit price (typically 18–22p/kWh in 2026, fixed or with annual indexation, against grid retail of 24–32p/kWh). You pay nothing upfront, take no installation or maintenance risk, and benefit from a 20–35% discount versus grid import for 15–25 years. At end of contract you typically have an option to buy the system at fair market value (often £1) or have the PPA provider remove it. PPAs are weaker financially over the asset's full life (you don't capture the residual value or post-PPA savings) but they're zero-risk, zero-capex, and zero-balance-sheet. Best fit: businesses without corporation tax exposure to absorb AIA (charities, certain not-for-profits), businesses constrained on capex with weak ability to take asset finance, businesses planning to relocate within 5 years, or businesses that simply prefer to outsource the asset entirely. See PPA service page for full mechanics.

Side-by-side comparison: £80,000 100 kW project

Real-shape project: a 100 kW commercial solar PV install at £80,000 turnkey for a UK limited company at the 25% main rate of corporation tax. Year-one savings £18,000 (£15,500 avoided import + £2,500 SEG export), 4% annual bill inflation assumption, 25-year asset life, 7% DCF discount rate.

Route	Year-one cash impact	Net capex after relief	25-yr NPV	IRR equivalent
Cash + AIA	-£60,000 (£80k capex less £20k AIA tax relief)	£60,000	£275,000	17.8%
Asset finance (7y)	-£0 capex; +£3,400 (£18k savings less £14.6k finance)	£0	£218,000	14.5% (cash-on-cash)
Operating lease (10y)	-£0 capex; +£5,400 (£18k savings less £12.6k lease)	£0	£165,000	11.8%
PPA (15y)	-£0 capex; +£3,500 (saving vs grid retail)	£0	£90,000	n/a

Cash plus AIA delivers the strongest financial outcome. Asset finance is the most popular SME choice — the trade-off of slightly weaker NPV against zero capex and immediate cash-flow positive operation is usually the right call when capex is constrained.

Side-by-side comparison: £200,000 250 kW project

Real-shape project: a 250 kW commercial solar PV install at £200,000 turnkey, year-one savings £45,000, same assumptions as above.

Route	Year-one cash impact	Net capex after relief	25-yr NPV
Cash + AIA	-£150,000 (£200k less £50k AIA relief)	£150,000	£725,000
Asset finance (7y)	-£0 capex; +£8,500 (£45k savings less £36.5k finance)	£0	£560,000
Operating lease (10y)	-£0 capex; +£13,500 (£45k savings less £31.5k lease)	£0	£420,000
PPA (15y)	-£0 capex; +£10,500 (saving vs grid retail)	£0	£235,000

At larger project sizes, the absolute NPV gap between routes widens — cash plus AIA delivers nearly £500k more 25-year NPV than PPA. For businesses with capex headroom, the financial argument for cash purchase strengthens with scale.

Government-backed finance and grant stacking

Several government-backed schemes can stack with private finance routes. The Recovery Loan Scheme has been replaced by the Growth Guarantee Scheme (British Business Bank), a government-backed guarantee on lending from accredited lenders. The Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF) closed in July 2025 and no successor fund is planned, so it cannot be counted on; check GOV.UK for any scheme open now. Regional grant rounds from Mayoral Combined Authorities in Greater Manchester (GMCA), West Midlands (WMCA), West Yorkshire (WYCA) and Liverpool City Region (LCRCA) are occasional, competitive and mostly closed; check the combined authority website for any round open now. For public sector bodies (NHS, schools, local authorities, universities), the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) closed to new applications in November 2024 and there is no open England-wide Salix loan for new applicants; Salix administers separate public-body loan programmes for the Scottish and Welsh governments with their own terms. In Wales the business route is the Development Bank of Wales Green Business Loan Scheme, a loan, not a grant, and in Scotland the Business Energy Scotland SME Loan is not accepting new applications for solar PV, so it cannot be counted on for a solar project. See our full guide at commercial solar grants and the canonical grants and funding page.

Choosing your route: a decision framework

Six questions filter most businesses to the right finance route in 5 minutes.

1. Are you a profitable UK limited company at the 25% main rate? If no, AIA is weaker and PPA becomes more attractive. If yes, AIA is genuinely valuable.
2. Do you have capex headroom? If no, eliminate cash purchase and consider asset finance, operating lease, or PPA. If yes, cash purchase is on the table.
3. Are you planning to relocate within 5 years? If yes, PPA is the only sensible route — asset finance and lease have early-termination penalties that destroy economics.
4. Do you need off-balance-sheet treatment? Most leases are now on-balance-sheet under IFRS 16, but operating lease may still suit some businesses with covenant-driven balance sheet pressure.
5. Is your annual energy spend above £100,000? If yes, the absolute return on cash purchase makes the AIA tax relief substantial. If below, the smaller absolute relief may not justify capex outlay versus a finance route.
6. Is any grant round open for your site? Regional grant rounds are occasional, competitive and mostly closed, the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme closed to new applications in November 2024, and the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (closed July 2025, no successor planned) cannot be counted on. Check the council or combined authority website for any round open now before signing any private finance package.

Maintenance, performance guarantees and finance covenants

Whichever finance route you pick, maintenance and performance matter. Modern monocrystalline panels carry 25-year linear performance warranties (typically guaranteeing 85% of nameplate output at year 25) from tier-1 manufacturers. Inverters carry 5–10 year warranties as standard, extendable to 15–20 years for an additional fee (typically £1,500–£3,500 on a 100 kW system). Asset finance and operating lease providers will typically require a maintenance contract for the duration of the finance term — covering quarterly visual inspection, annual electrical compliance test, inverter health check and string IV-curve testing. Typical maintenance cost: £8–£15 per kW per year. PPA providers handle all maintenance themselves as the asset owner. Performance guarantees from the installer (sometimes called yield guarantees) are not the same as panel warranties — they're a contractual commitment from the installer that the system will produce a guaranteed minimum kWh per year, typically backed by an insurance-backed guarantee or installer balance sheet.