There are 125,000 electric vehicles (EVs) on UK roads and this figure is set to boom, reaching 1 million by 2020 and 9 million by 2030, according to the National Grid. With that in mind, the BRE has recently issued a new guide for solar car parks, looking at how parking facilities can combine energy generation and storage with EV charging in a single site, according to PBC Today.
The new guide, ‘Multifunctional Car Parks: a good practice guide for owners and developers’ sets out key factors to consider in building a business case for a multifunctional car park project, right through from planning and preparation stages to delivery.
There are more than 17,000 parking facilities in the UK, generating around £1.5bn each year. Using car parks to generate solar power is a great way to grow additional revenue from these brownfield sites. Adding solar PV panels can improve the availability of attractive covered parking spaces, make renewable energy available to adjacent premises and provide electricity for charging EVs.
“At present there are few documents that cover the integration of solar with other technologies such as storage and EV charging,” said guide author Chris Coonick.
“As the UK Government seeks to include more renewable energy in the energy mix, solving problems associated with intermittent renewables generation will become more imperative due to the inflexibility of our electricity distribution network, as mentioned in the recent Clean Growth Strategy. Low-carbon solutions which balance electricity supply and demand are required to achieve this, and multifunctional solar car parks can be part of this solution.”
Multifunctional solar car parks are said to be typically more cost effective than installing PV, energy storage and EV charge points separately, as they share infrastructure and project delivery costs.
Are you interested in developing a solar car park and making the most of your roof space – your otherwise untapped assets? Why not get in touch with the team today to find out more? Contact us on 01202 862 760 or visit the website at www.zestecgroup.co.uk
Zestec are in the process of developing funded models for integrating energy generation and EV charging into solar parking facilities, along with standalone EV charging facilities. Register to find out more by emailing info@zestecgroup.co.uk and we’ll make sure you are kept informed of our progress in the coming months.