The bulk of EU solar power comes from building installations, which make up around two-thirds (over 220 GW) of current EU solar capacity.

Despite a recent slowdown in the rooftop segment, it still provided close to 60% of Europe’s newly installed solar capacity in 2024, and the prominence of rooftop solar is unlikely to change in the foreseeable. The immovable truths of versatility, affordability, and energy security will help the segment weather headwinds. Now the task is ensuring the smoothest development possible – and truly maximising the potential of solar buildings.

SolarPower Europe has published ‘Flexible buildings, resilient grids’ to map the flexibility value of solar buildings, explore the real world case studies of flexible buildings in action, and recommend policy actions to take flexibility to the next level.

The EU Joint Research Centre conservatively estimates that EU solar rooftops could host 1.1 TW. Beyond capacity potential, and their traditional role as passive energy consumers, solar buildings offer boundless flexibility potential for the wider energy system. Today, solar buildings are the digital gateway to demand response; they support grid stability by integrating solar panels with battery storage, heat pumps, electric vehicles, and smart energy management systems. Smart solar buildings enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and strengthen grid reliability in mature solar markets.

Our modelling shows, that by 2030, smart solar building solutions could meet more than half of EU daily energy system flexibility needs, and a third of its annual flexibility needs. That means a more cost-effective system, resilient to shocks and strengthening Europe’s energy security.

The good news is that technical solutions and business models already exist today. A quickly growing smart buildings segment is explored in this report, by LCP Delta in chapter 1. Our flexibility case studies from companies actively offering  such commercial products (in chapter 4) further set out the tangible benefits to both citizens and grids, from energy-sharing communities to participation in balancing markets.