Solar battery upgrades in Edinburgh and the Lothians

Housing stock

Edinburgh's housing is distinctive. Georgian and Victorian sandstone tenements dominate the city centre, New Town, and inner suburbs like Bruntsfield, Marchmont, and Morningside. These present specific challenges for solar:

• Shared roof access: tenement roofs are common property. Under the Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004, any modification to the roof requires consent from a majority of co-owners. We handle the consent process.
• Conservation areas: large parts of Edinburgh are conservation areas — New Town, Old Town, and much of the inner suburbs. Solar panels may require planning permission from the City of Edinburgh Council. Panels must not be visible from the street in most cases. We check before you commit.
• Slate roofs: most Edinburgh tenements have natural slate. Scaffolding is usually required, which adds to cost. A site survey gives you the exact installed price including any access costs.

Outer suburbs — Corstorphine, Cramond, South Queensferry, Balerno — and the Lothians more broadly have a higher proportion of detached and semi-detached houses with pitched roofs, simpler access, and no conservation restrictions.

DNO: SP Energy Networks (SPEN)

Edinburgh and the Lothians are in SPEN's licence area. For solar and battery installations:

• G98 (up to 3.68 kW export): simple notification, processed within 10 working days. Most battery retrofits fall under G98.
• G99 (above 3.68 kW): formal application required, typically 4–8 weeks. Required for larger systems or where multiple installations share a transformer.

We handle the entire DNO process — you do not need to contact SPEN yourself.

Local yield

HES grants (Edinburgh postcodes)

Edinburgh postcodes (EH1–EH17) are urban. The HES package for urban homes is:

• £7,500 grant + £7,500 interest-free loan = £15,000 total support (heat pump stream)
• Requires a heat pump installation alongside battery/solar

A separate energy efficiency grant of up to £7,500 is available for measures such as insulation. Combined grants: up to £15,000.

Applicant must be a natural person, owner-occupier, on domestic council tax.

Source: Home Energy Scotland, checked August 2026. The standalone solar PV grant stopped on 6 June 2024. Rural uplift (£9,000 grant) applies to eligible rural postcodes only — not to Edinburgh city. Amounts depend on the measures installed and your eligibility.

Local Home Energy Scotland contact

For impartial advice on energy efficiency and grant eligibility, contact Home Energy Scotland on 0808 808 2282 (freephone, Mon–Fri 8am–8pm, Sat 9am–5pm). They cover Edinburgh and the Lothians.