Renewables now mandatory for island new builds

All new housing and commercial buildings must feature solar panels or another form of renewable energy technology, Guernsey's planning authority has said.

Previously, planning policy had "encouraged" installing ways to harness renewable energy, it said.

However it is now "mandatory" that roof-mounted solar panels or "appropriate alternatives", including non-roof solar panels or air source heat pumps, are installed.

Deputy Neil Inder, president of the Development and Planning Authority (DPA), said: "Making solar panels mandatory on new developments is good for our environment and is good for our energy security."

Inder said the fact some developers already installed the technology "as standard" was "good", but said making it mandatory meant they were "making the most of the opportunities" provided by new developments.

He said it was cheaper to fit them during the build rather than later "down the line".

The process began in 2023 when the States agreed Guernsey's Electricity Strategy and directed the Committee for the Environment & Infrastructure, in consultation with the DPA, to explore ways solar panel arrays could increase on-island electricity generation.

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