Lease
Operating lease to own indicative, 60 month term.
- Gross Savings Y1
- R 44 122
- Gross Savings over 20 years
- R 6 674 268
Commercial solar calculator
Estimate the business case from usage, not bill total.
Estimate the commercial solar business case from monthly kWh usage and your current electricity rate. Compare lease, finance and outright investment before requesting a detailed model.
Why usage matters
Fixed charges can distort a bill-led estimate.
- Use the kWh figure from your electricity account.
- Use the energy rate per kWh, not the full account value.
- Compare operating lease, bank finance and outright investment.
- Request a model when the numbers support further investigation.
Calculator inputs
Start with monthly kWh and tariff.
Enter the average monthly usage from the electricity account and the effective energy rate per kWh. Fixed charges are not treated as solar savings in this calculator.
Indicative model
Compare the three spreadsheet options.
Each card gives an indicative view of the same commercial solar system under a different funding route. Use these results to decide whether to request a detailed model.
Estimated system size44,3kWp
PV generation Y158 871kWh
Finance
Commercial Bank Finance 60 months @10,5%
- Gross Savings Y1
- R 29 669
- Gross Savings over 20 years
- R 6 143 217
- Section 12B tax benefit Y1
- R 137 587
Outright Investment
Outright purchase of the system. Not financed.
- Gross Savings Y1
- R 176 613
- Year 1 ROI
- 34,7%
- Savings over 20 years
- R 7 436 191
- Internal Rate of Return over 20 years
- 41,8%
- Section 12B tax benefit Y1
- R 137 587
Assumptions
Standard assumptions used in this calculator.
These non-editable assumptions keep the calculator consistent. Gentricity validates them against the account, site and finance route before a formal model.
- Estimated solar offset
- 50%
- System type
- Grid-tied rooftop installation
- Operation profile
- 5-day week, mainly daytime operation
- Panel degradation
- 0,7% p.a.
- Annual Eskom escalation
- 8% p.a.
- Inverter replacement
- Excluded after 5 / 10 year warranty
How to use this
How to interpret the estimate.
01
Use monthly kWh
Use the average monthly kWh from the electricity account. Do not use the Rand bill total where fixed costs are material.
02
Use an energy rate
Use the effective R/kWh energy charge. Demand charges and fixed costs still need to be reviewed separately.
03
Request a detailed model
A final proposal needs the bill, load profile, roof or land, backup requirement, metering and finance route.
The system has exceeded initial performance projections, delivering better-than-anticipated yields - a result that speaks to both the accuracy of their modelling and the quality of their execution.
A calculator is a starting point. The decision needs a model.
Send us the account and site context when the numbers support a detailed commercial solar model.
Get your solar model