Could the Palace of Westminster go solar?

Solar panels on the Palace of Westminster are a thought experiment rather than a proposal: the home of Parliament is Grade I listed and sits inside a World Heritage Site. The measurement stands on its own, though. Google reads about 17,500 sq m of pitched and turreted roof running along the Thames, which comes out at roughly 2.4 MW, close to 6,000 panels, and 1.9 to 2.3 million kWh a year. That is the yearly electricity of around 765 homes, on a building already deep in a long restoration programme.

Roof area read from above: ~17,498 m².Imagery dated 2024-08-11.

Full methodology, assumptions and cross-checks: how we measure. Includes solar data from Google.

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