The recent Eco Build show in London featured a lot of companies that were interested in roof tops with plenty of opportunity to have a well grassed eco roof. The roof top is certainly an opportunity for companies both to save and create energy.

The UK Government is again reviewing feed in tariffs from micro generation energy sites. This easy decision has been a long time coming. If that is the case roof tops may have another use, not just for gardens, signage and mobile phone masts, but also for energy. Roof tops could be leased to third parties as energy stations.

Just as there has been a land grab for wind farms so there might be a land grab for the tops of industrial estates, office buildings and skyscrapers where dedicated companies lease the roof tops and install clean energy technology. These locations would then be professionally managed and maintained by these companies, and their produce, clean energy would be sold on back to either the building’s owners or the onto the grid.

If an industry was to form along these lines, it could deliver economies of scale that would bring down capital, installation and operating costs and accelerate the importance of both micro generation technology and feed in tariffs, both in the short and longer term.

Over time this kind of business could move beyond roof tops to other types of urban space.

What is needed to encourage companies to create a business of this kind? The first is that there has to be a market and the feed in tariff structure must allow for rice at a quantity that is effectively subsidised by cheaper polluting energy. Government has a pretty good idea of what might be needed here especially if EU targets are to be met. The second must be clear and preferably uniform planning rules that will allow and accelerate the deployment of solar panels or wind turbines. The third because so much expenditure is upfront is perhaps some accelerated capital allowances so that at least companies coming into the sector might have some leasing options.

Is there anyone out there interested? If so we’d like to know!