Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to incentivise the use of industrial spaces for the generation of solar power using solar panels; what assessment he has made of the feasibility of increasing the use of industrial spaces for that purpose; and if he will make a statement.

Solar is a versatile low-cost technology which can be deployed on domestic and industrial roof tops and on the ground in a variety of spaces. In the Net Zero Strategy, the Government committed to sustained increase in deploying renewable generation technologies, including all types solar into the 2020s and beyond.

The Government is supporting the deployment of large scale solar through the Contracts for Difference scheme. Those installing rooftop solar on industrial and other buildings can receive payment for any surplus electricity that is exported to the grid through the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG). Government is also providing fiscal incentives through capital allowances for spend on solar panels, and as announced by my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Autumn Budget 2021, solar and storage used on site will be exempt from business rates from 1 April 2022 until 31 March 2035.