Solar system, especially solar PV can be set up on commercial buildings for lighting, AC and other usage. This helps commercial business move away from relying solely on central power plants and dramatically reduce grid electricity use and electricity bills.

For most commercial and industrial buildings, rooftop solar technology is the clear choice as most other renewable energies aren't quite ready for prime time in the small-installation. They thrive in large megawatt-sized developments. Solar can be a solution almost everywhere.

There are other reasons why captive/rooftop solar systems make sense for these large facilities:

• Large, flat, relatively empty roofs top most industrial facilities, warehouses, and big-box retail stores, creating a solar-energy system's version of prime real estate. Low-slope commercial and industrial rooftops cover approximately 13-billion sq. yd. worldwide, enough to generate more than 800 gigawatts of electricity. These flat and often easily accessible rooftops make solar-system installation and maintenance easy on roofers, solar photovoltaic integrators, and the building owners.
• Potential customers are likely to find companies that have gone green much more appealing. Solar installations are visible and one of the most recognizable symbols of clean energy and environmental consciousness. Whether it's the environmentally conscious consumer who would rather buy dinner ingredients in a solar-powered grocery store or a major industrial giant looking for positive press about their own green efforts, solar installations can make a difference to customers.
• The certain low cost of clean energy protects a company from volatile energy prices. The fuels that most of utilities rely on to produce electricity-coal and natural gas-fluctuate in price. While they may not vary as wildly as the price of gasoline, they historically have risen over time. In response, so do the rates electric companies charge, sometimes dramatically. Making the switch to generating power on-site from an eternally free source of energy-the sun-can bring certainty to operating costs for decades.
• Dozens of state and central tax rebate and credit opportunities are available for rooftop-solar systems.