Solar Feasibility Study
A structured assessment that answers whether a specific site can host a solar installation that is technically sound, economically viable, and regulatory compliant, combining resource analysis, shading, grid access, financial modeling, and permitting review into a decision-ready report.
A solar feasibility study is the filter that separates a prospect from a project. Any site can technically host solar, but not every site deserves the engineering cost of a detailed design. Feasibility is the structured way of deciding which sites graduate from "lead" to "project" and which should be declined early, before both parties spend weeks on a deal that was never going to pencil.
The study stacks five independent checks. Resource analysis confirms there is enough sunlight hitting the site to justify a system (tropical and temperate sites rarely fail here, but heavy-shading rooftops and polar latitudes often do). Site assessment confirms the physical envelope supports enough modules at workable orientations and that the roof or ground has structural and geotechnical capacity. Electrical review confirms the utility interconnection point can host the proposed system size without expensive upgrades. Financial modeling confirms the project clears the customer's hurdle rate under realistic tariff and incentive assumptions. Regulatory review confirms the site can be permitted within a usable timeline.
What a feasibility study actually decides
The output is not a yes or no, it is a ranked set of outcomes. Pass means the project is fundable under the current plan. Conditional means it can be made to work if the customer raises the budget, accepts a smaller system, or waits for a tariff change. Fail means no configuration of this site and this customer makes economic sense. A good study does the work of saying fail out loud, early, in writing, so neither side chases a lost cause.
Why it matters for solar installers
Installers who skip feasibility and jump straight to design pay for it with stalled projects, contract disputes, and abandoned proposals. SolarVis' feasibility analysis runs the resource, shading, and production simulation in minutes, flagging risky sites before an engineer ever opens the design tool, so your pipeline only contains projects you can actually close and build.
Common questions
- What is in a solar feasibility study?
- A full study covers solar resource analysis (irradiance, soiling, temperature), site assessment (roof or land area, orientation, shading, structural capacity), electrical review (interconnection point, hosting capacity, net metering rules), financial model (capex, opex, tariff, incentives, payback, IRR), and regulatory check (permitting path, zoning, environmental). The output is a go or no-go recommendation with quantified risks.
- How is a feasibility study different from a site survey?
- A site survey is a physical visit to measure, photograph, and validate on-site conditions, usually after the customer has signaled intent. A feasibility study is a desk-based analysis that happens earlier, often before a proposal, to decide whether the project is even worth engineering. The survey feeds into an executable design, the study feeds into an investment decision.
- Who pays for a feasibility study?
- For residential and small commercial jobs, installers absorb the cost and treat it as part of pre-sale effort. For mid-size commercial and utility-scale, the developer or host pays for an engineering firm to run the study, because the report becomes part of the bankability package lenders require before committing capital.
