Apart from off-grid homes, other remote buildings such as schools, community halls, and clinics can all benefit from electrification with Solar Energy. This can power TV, video, telephony and a range of refrigeration equipment, which is available to meet World Health Organisation standards for vaccine refrigeration, for instance . Rather than base Solar power generation on individual dwellings, it is also possible to configure central village power plants that can either power homes via a local wired network, or act as a battery charging station where members of the community can bring batteries to be recharged.

PV Systems can be used to pump water in remote areas e.g. as part of a portable water supply system. Specialized solar water pumps are designed for submersible use (in a borehole) or to float on open water. Usually, the ability to store water in a tank means that battery power storage is unnecessary. Large-scale desalination plants can also be PV powered. Larger off-grid systems can be constructed to power larger and more sophisticated electrical loads by using an array of PV modules and having more battery storage capacity.

To meet the largest power requirements in an off-grid location, the PV system is sometimes best configured with a small diesel generator. This means that the PV system no longer has to be sized to cope with the worst sunlight conditions available during the year. The diesel generator can then provide the back-up power, but its use is minimised during the rest of the year by the PV system, so fuel and maintenance costs are kept low.

Solar energy can also power area lighting to enable more outdoor activities after dark or improve security, and to illuminate signs or advertising boards.