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Owning vs PPA, Side by Side
| Buy the system | Solar PPA | |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | Full capital outlay | None |
| Electricity saving | Everything the roof generates | Discount vs grid on what you use |
| Maintenance | Yours (or an O&M contract) | The funder’s problem |
| Tax relief | Capital allowances (AIA or 50% FYA) | None, it is not your asset |
| Term | Yours from day one | 15 to 25 years, then buy, extend or remove |
| Best for | Businesses with capital and tax appetite | Businesses protecting capital or off balance sheet |
Owning wins on total return, every unit generated is yours at full value, plus the tax relief. The PPA wins on cash flow, no outlay and immediate savings, at the price of sharing the value with the funder for the term.
What to Read Before Signing
Three clauses decide whether a PPA is good. The rate and its indexation, a low starting price that escalates aggressively can cross your grid price in later years. The term and exit provisions, what happens if you sell the building or want the system out. And the end of term option, a fair residual purchase price is the difference between a gift and a hostage.
We work with PPA funders and we sell systems outright, so our comparison is genuinely neutral: we model both against your consumption and show which wins for your numbers.
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Who PPAs Suit
Energy hungry businesses without capital to deploy, organisations that cannot use the tax relief, and multi site operators who want solar everywhere without a capex programme. If that is you, the PPA turns your roof into a discount on your biggest utility bill for someone else’s money.
