London Solar Opportunity Map: Rooftop and Ground-Level Solar Potential

The London Solar Opportunity Map, developed by the Mayor of London with UCL's Energy Institute and Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, identifies potential sites for solar panel and storage installation across London. It provides initial electricity generation estimates based on LiDAR data interpretation from the Environment Agency. The current version uses building outlines from 2017 and solar potential figures derived from LiDAR data collected between March 2006 and January 2016.

Use Cases

• Identify high-potential rooftops for solar installation based on LiDAR-derived building geometry.
• Estimate potential electricity generation for specific properties using the model's calculations.
• Prioritize areas for solar energy development across London for city-wide planning initiatives.
• Conduct preliminary site screening for solar and storage projects before detailed studies.

Strengths

• Based on LiDAR data from the Environment Agency, which provides accurate distance measurements.
• Covers both rooftop and ground-level solar potential across the entire Greater London area.
• Includes a 'lidar_date' field indicating the specific data collection year for each building.

Limitations

• Building outlines are from 2017, and solar potential data is from 2006-2016, which may not reflect current structures or conditions.
• The description notes it is an initial estimate; a detailed site-specific study is required before installation.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.

Provenance

Source

Greater London Authority, UCL Energy Institute, UCL Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis.

Collection Method

Interpretation of LiDAR data collected by the Environment Agency.

Time Range

Solar potential data from varying years between March 2006 and January 2016; building outlines from 2017.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-25 12:03:39.180321; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Greater London, United Kingdom.