Guides · Faisalabad, Lahore, Punjab
Solar for Offices and Bank Branches
Short answer
Solar for offices and bank branches is one of the cleanest matches in commercial solar: the building is busiest from morning to late afternoon, when the panels produce most, so nearly all the output is used on site. The points that need planning are the IT and UPS loads that must never drop, the weekends when the building is nearly empty, and, for banks and chains, how to roll out a standard design across many branches.
This guide covers single offices, corporate floors and multi-branch networks in Punjab. For shops and multi-tenant plazas, see our guide to commercial solar for shops and plazas.
Why offices and branches suit solar
- Load follows office hours. Air conditioning, lighting, computers and printers run roughly 9 AM to 5 PM, inside the solar day.
- Cooling is the biggest load. In a Punjab summer, AC load peaks in the early afternoon, close to peak solar output. Inverter ACs make the match even better; see inverter AC vs non-inverter AC on solar.
- Little evening use. Once staff leave, load drops to security lighting, CCTV, servers and a few always-on circuits.
- Units used on site are worth the full tariff. Under net billing, exported units earn much less.
Offices and bank branches
Daytime load
Matches solar hours
Backup
IT, servers and lights
Branches
Same design repeated
The daytime load match
Start with how the building uses power hour by hour. A typical branch or office has three layers:
| Layer | Examples | When it runs | Solar fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base load | Servers, network, CCTV, alarms, ATM, security lights | 24 hours | Solar covers the day; night needs grid or battery |
| Office-hours load | ACs, lighting, PCs, printers, counters | Working hours | Excellent fit; the main target for solar |
| Peaks | Several ACs starting together, lifts, kitchen | Mornings and lunch | Handled by grid or battery; affects inverter size |
The aim is to size the solar plant to the office-hours load on a normal working day, not to fill the roof. Our guide to sizing under net billing shows the method step by step with example arithmetic.
IT and UPS loads: what solar does and does not replace
Most offices and every bank branch already have a UPS for computers, servers, counters and security systems. Solar does not remove the need for it.
- The UPS protects against a break. Servers, core banking terminals and security systems must not see even a short interruption. An online UPS gives that.
- Solar reduces the energy cost. On-grid solar supplies daytime energy but switches off when the grid fails.
- A hybrid system adds backup. A hybrid inverter with a battery can carry selected circuits through load-shedding. Whether it switches with no break or a very short transfer depends on the product and wiring. For truly critical IT, keep the online UPS on those circuits, with the hybrid system or generator behind it.
Many offices run old UPS units with tubular batteries for lighting and fans. Replacing them with a properly designed hybrid solar system often makes sense. Our guide on UPS vs solar for load-shedding compares the two, and hybrid vs on-grid vs off-grid helps you choose the system type.
Branches with a generator can integrate it with a proper controller; see solar and generator hybrid systems. We do not sell generators, but we integrate existing sets.
Weekends, holidays and export
The weakness of office solar is the weekend. On Sundays and public holidays the panels still produce, but the building uses little. Under net billing that surplus is exported at the lower rate, or wasted if export is limited.
Ways to handle it:
- Size to the working-day load, accepting some low-value export on closed days.
- Count closed days honestly in any estimate. A branch closed on Saturday and Sunday has a very different pattern from an office open six days a week.
- Use a battery only if it has a job, such as evening security load, backup for load-shedding, or storing weekend output for Monday morning. A battery bought only to absorb weekend surplus rarely pays.
- Check net billing eligibility. The 2026 rules refer to three-phase 400 V and 11 kV consumers, and system size cannot exceed sanctioned load. See our net metering and net billing guide.
Example arithmetic only, with round illustrative numbers: if a branch's solar plant produces 40 units on a typical day and the branch is closed 2 days a week, about 80 units a week fall on closed days. If the branch uses 10 units a day of base load on those days, about 60 units a week are exported. Multiply by your own export rate and compare with what the same units would save if used on site. This is a method, not a forecast.
Rented premises and building rules
Many bank branches and offices are in rented buildings or plazas. Before design:
- Get written roof permission from the owner, including structure fixings and cable routes.
- Agree what happens at lease end: does the system stay, move or get bought out?
- Check which meter the solar will feed. A system normally supplies only the connection it is installed behind.
- Plan around tanks and AC units on the roof; an elevated structure can keep walkways clear. See L2, L3 and elevated structures.
Multi-branch rollouts
Banks, pharmacy chains, schools and franchise networks often want solar across many sites. A rollout works best when it is planned as a programme, not as separate one-off jobs.
- Collect data centrally. Twelve months of bills, sanctioned load, connection type, opening hours and roof photos for each branch.
- Group the branches. Most networks fall into a few types, for example small single-storey branches, plaza branches and regional offices.
- Standardise the design for each group: the same inverter family, protection layout and labelling. This simplifies spares, training and maintenance.
- Survey every site anyway. Standard designs still need a site check for shading, roof strength and cable routes.
- Phase the rollout by data quality and roof readiness, starting with branches that have the strongest daytime load.
- Monitor all sites in one place. Most modern inverters offer a monitoring platform that can show many sites together. See our solar monitoring app guide. We monitor our systems remotely, subject to equipment capability.
- Agree one service process: one contact number, a clear complaint log and agreed response targets.
A good rollout proposal gives a BOQ per site plus a programme summary. Our guide to comparing solar quotations lists what each BOQ should show.
Office solar price
| Site type | Typical scope | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Single office or small branch | On-grid or hybrid, sized to office-hours load | WhatsApp for today's rate |
| Corporate office or regional HQ | Three-phase plant, hybrid backup for selected circuits | WhatsApp for today's rate |
| Multi-branch programme | Standard designs per branch type, phased rollout | WhatsApp for today's rate |
Our projects start at about 6 kW.
How Solar Works Pakistan delivers office and branch projects
Solar Works Pakistan is a solar EPC, engineering and trading company founded in 2021, headquartered in Faisalabad with a branch in Lahore. We have served 300+ customers, including 50+ industrial clients, and serve sites throughout Punjab.
- In-house design and a detailed BOQ with brand, model, quantity and warranty for each item.
- Our own teams for installation, testing, safe commissioning and handover.
- Panels, inverters and batteries carry the manufacturer's warranty per product. Our structures carry a 3-year Solar Works Pakistan structure warranty, and our service warranty covers the first year under applicable project terms.
- After a complaint is registered, we target sending service personnel within 48 hours to begin diagnosis.
Larger programmes follow a project-specific schedule. See our industrial and commercial solar page.
Get today's price or a free site survey
Send 12 months of bills, opening hours and roof photos for one site, or a branch list for a rollout. Our engineers will size the system around your working-day load.
- WhatsApp or call: 0336 666 4321
- Email: info@solarworks.pk
- Head office: Main Boulevard, Sargodha Rd, Block F FDA City, Faisalabad (Faisalabad page)
- Lahore branch: 2nd Floor, Jeff Heights, Gulberg, Lahore (Lahore page)
- Hours: 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, daily
- Service area: all of Punjab. You can also contact us online.
Site surveys are normally free.
Frequently asked questions
Is solar worth it for an office?
Usually, because an office uses most of its power in daylight, so nearly all solar output saves the full tariff. The case is weaker if the building is closed several days a week or the roof is heavily shaded.
Can solar replace the UPS in a bank branch?
Not for critical IT. Servers and banking terminals still need an online UPS that gives no break. A hybrid solar system can replace old UPS units for lighting and fans, and can sit behind the online UPS.
What happens to solar output on Sundays?
The building uses little, so most of it is exported at the lower net billing rate, or limited if export is not allowed. Size the plant to the working-day load and count closed days in any estimate.
Do offices need a battery with solar?
Only if it has a clear job: backup during load-shedding, evening security load, or replacing old UPS batteries. For a building that runs mainly in office hours, on-grid solar alone is often enough.
Can a bank install solar across all its branches at once?
It can be planned as one programme with standard designs per branch type, but each site still needs a survey. Phasing by data and roof readiness keeps the rollout manageable.
Can a rented office install solar?
Yes, with the owner's written permission and an agreement on what happens to the system when the lease ends.
Sources
Net billing facts are reused from our net metering and net billing guide, which lists its sources, including the NEPRA (Prosumer) Regulations, 2026, SRO 251(I)/2026: https://ke.com.pk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/8.-NEPRA-Prosumer-Regulations-SRO-251I2026-09-02-26.pdf