Solar and battery storage sector’s best projects showcased

Solar Energy UK
24 July 2024

Solar Energy UK has published a series of case studies that highlight some of the solar and battery energy storage sector’s best projects.

Among our members’ submissions is the UK’s biggest rooftop photovoltaic installation, fitted at the UK’s busiest port. Custom Solar’s 6.5MW installation at the Port of Hull boasts 21,000 panels on major terminal buildings, enabling the facility to power itself during peak generation periods. It is also slashing carbon dioxide emissions by almost 3,000 tonnes per year.

Similarly groundbreaking was EvoEnergy’s Stourton Park & Ride in Leeds – a 1.2MW installation of solar car ports that saves an impressive 471 tonnes of CO₂ per year. It was the first fully solar-powered park-and-ride in the country, with a 500 kilowatt and 950 kilowatt-hour battery system and 26 electric vehicle charging units combining to overcome a constrained connection to the grid.

Another case study covers the installation of more than 20,000 panels across 60 new Lidl supermarkets across England, Scotland and Wales by distributor Segen and installer Square 4 Solar. Most of this was conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic, when supply chain instability and limited availability of stock made the retailer’s deadlines particularly challenging.

Further case studies concern:

• Emtec Energy’s groundbreaking contract to install solar PV and battery energy storage to 500 council homes, awarded by Aberdeenshire Council in 2019. The project sought to alleviate grid constraints, provide clean energy to tenants and reduce fuel poverty – all while providing an income for the council. The project set a precedent by aggregating the solar and battery systems to deliver grid services.
• Berryhill Solar Farm, Solar2’s consented but currently unbuilt 49.9 megawatt solar farm in Invergowrie. It will deliver benefits to Muirhead, Birkhill and Liff Community Councils estimated conservatively at £900,000 over its lifetime. The panelled area is expected to be sown with a grassland seed mix and grazed by sheep.
• Renewable Connections’ 49.9MW Tregonning solar farm with battery energy storage, under development in Cornwall, which is expected to save 27,600 tonnes of CO₂ each year alongside biodiversity gains. It will also provide “a stable, secure and sustainable future” for the landowner, who will maintain grazing on the solar farm and cereal production on another part of his farm.
• The 244kW of solar panels installed by Shawton Energy at Wigan & Leigh College, its Leigh Adult Learning Centre and its Pagefield Campus. The three installations together save almost £100,000 per year on energy bills, with the sun producing more than a quarter of their power and saving 68 tonnes of CO₂ per year.
• Shawton Energy custom-built 69kW installation at the Dakota Manchester hotel, using Longi 435W panels, three SolarEdge inverters and 158 SolarEdge power optimisers, fitted in only two weeks. It saved the hotel almost £18,000 on its electricity bills in its first year.
• EvoEnergy and Tag Energy’s Hawkers Hill battery energy storage facility. Completed in 2023, it can storage 40 megawatt hours of energy and supply 20 megawatts to the grid, enabling greater penetration of renewable energy into homes and businesses by stabilising the grid.
• Aldi’s £11.6m Eco Concept Store in Leamington Spa. Another EvoEnergy project, the development incorporates 209 kilowatts of solar PV capacity, cutting CO₂ emissions by almost 35 tonnes in its first year. The use of sustainable building materials also cuts energy demand by more than half compared to a conventional design.
• A 500kW rooftop system at the new £150m Southend Airport Business Park. Expected to generate 467 megawatt-hours of clean energy annually, the Photon Energy installation will slash CO₂ emissions by 98 tonnes per year and contribute to the ‘very good’ rating under the BREEAM building energy rating scheme.

Solar Energy UK encourages members to showcase their projects by making further submissions for the case study library, particularly residential installations and ground-mounted projects. Doing so provides industry recognition and media exposure, while building a resource that will benefit the industry, students and the future workforce by providing examples of successful projects and best practice. To participate, please contact Magdalena Miteva via mmiteva@solarenergyuk.org.

Submit your case study today!

[1] Solar Energy UK case studies

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Editor’s notes:

For more information or to request an interview, please contact:

Gareth Simkins, Senior Communications Adviser

gsimkins@solarenergyuk.org