Dublin Green Roof Gets Solar Panels That Help Plants Grow

A Dublin rooftop just solved a problem that's stumped city planners for years: how to have both solar panels and green space without choosing one over the other.

Over Easy Solar installed Ireland's first vertical solar system directly into a living green roof this month. The 5.37 kW installation uses 21 lightweight vertical panels that stand upright among the plants instead of lying flat across the roof.

Here's the clever part: the panels and plants actually help each other. The vertical design lets rainwater flow to the vegetation below while providing shade that keeps the roof cooler. Meanwhile, the surrounding plants boost the panels' energy output through something called the albedo effect, where light reflects off surfaces to hit both sides of the special bifacial panels.

"Customers don't have to choose between a green roof and solar installation anymore," says Keelin Currivan from Over Easy Solar. The company partnered with Dutch sustainable design firm Sempergreen to make the dual system work.

Irish contractor Solar Precision jumped at the chance to be first in the country to install the technology. They wanted to prove that commercial buildings could maximize both renewable energy and biodiversity in the same footprint.

The system has already shown it works without compromising either the panels' performance or the plants' health. Solar Precision says the installation has given them confidence to pursue similar projects across Ireland for both commercial and residential buildings.

The Ripple Effect

This Dublin installation joins a growing movement of vertical solar projects proving themselves worldwide. Over Easy Solar launched its first US system in New York earlier this year with a much larger 100 kW installation, followed by another in Vancouver, Canada.

The technology gained credibility after a year-long UK study showed the vertical bifacial panels actually outperformed traditional flat solar panels across all four seasons. That finding challenges the assumption that angled panels always capture more sun.

For cities struggling to balance green infrastructure with renewable energy goals, this combo approach opens new possibilities. Office buildings, apartments, and warehouses with green roofs no longer face an either-or decision about their rooftop real estate.

Urban spaces worldwide are realizing they can pack more environmental benefits into every square foot than previously imagined.