Why farms are ideal solar candidates
Three reasons farm solar pays back faster than almost any other use case:
1. Massive flat or low-pitch barn roofs — 1,000-5,000 m² is typical. Plenty of room for 100-500kW systems without planning. Roof-mounted systems on agricultural buildings are permitted development up to 1MW.
2. High daytime consumption — milking parlours, robotic milkers, grain dryers, ventilation fans, irrigation pumps, refrigeration. The pattern matches solar generation almost perfectly: 80%+ self-consumption is normal on dairy and arable farms.
3. Stable long-term tenure — farms aren't sold every 7 years like commercial property. A 25-year solar investment is a logical decision for a third-generation family farm.
We've installed agricultural solar across all six Midlands counties — from 30kW on a Warwickshire chicken farm to 350kW on a Staffordshire dairy.
Grants for farm solar in 2026
FETF (Farming Equipment & Technology Fund) — Defra grants of £25,000-£50,000 toward eligible technology including renewable energy. We help you identify the qualifying components and prepare the application.
SFI (Sustainable Farming Incentive) — pays farmers for sustainable practices including reduced grid energy use. Solar isn't directly grant-funded but contributes to multiple SFI standards.
Improving Farm Productivity Grant — up to 40% of capital costs on renewable energy installations including solar with battery storage.
Annual Investment Allowance — 100% of solar capex deductible from farm profit in year one (separate from any grant).
We work with Midland Agri Solutions and other Midlands ag-advisors who help farmers maximise grant stacking.
Agricultural solar use cases we install
Dairy farms — milking parlour pumps and refrigeration are huge electricity loads; solar with a small battery covers 70-85% of grid imports.
Arable / grain farms — grain dryers in late summer (Aug-Oct) coincide perfectly with peak solar months. Diversion to grain-drying is a common configuration.
Pig and poultry sheds — ventilation fans run year-round and 24/7. Solar + battery + tariff arbitrage saves £8-£15 per pig finished.
Horticulture / glasshouses — high lighting and pumping loads, often year-round. Larger systems with battery storage typical.
Equestrian / livery yards — moderate loads but consistent. Often paired with EV charging for visitor cars and electric horse-walkers.
Farm shops, cafes, glamping — diversification income depends on reliable, predictable energy cost. Solar fixes the cost base.
Roof-mount or ground-mount?
Roof-mount is preferred where possible: no land sacrifice, often permitted development, minimal civil works. Barn roofs need a structural survey but most agricultural buildings (post-2000 portal frames) are fit-for-purpose.
Ground-mount suits farms with steel-framed older barns (where adding 10 tonnes of panels is risky), or farms with unused field corners. Up to 1MW is permitted development for agricultural use, larger goes through planning. Typically combined with sheep-grazing under panels — "agrivoltaics" — which keeps the land productive.
We've designed and installed both patterns extensively across Midlands farms. See our farm solar page for case studies.