Solar panels for farms in Paignton
Around Paignton the constraint is rarely the roof. It is the incoming supply and what the network will accept back. What decides a farm scheme here is the state of the roof sheets and the incoming supply, which is why the survey looks at both before anyone sizes an array.
961 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 481,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Book a roof survey in PaigntonIllustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.
Agricultural rooftop solar across Devon
What a farm roof near Paignton generates
Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1221 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 961 kWh for every kWp installed (EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss). That is around 8 percent above the mean across the areas we cover, which is as strong as UK farm rooftop gets outside the south coast.
3 roof mounted schemes are on record nearby. Roof arrays under a megawatt frequently never reach that database at all, so the real number of farm roofs generating around Paignton is higher than the record shows.
Most of the buildings we look at here sit in the TQ postcode area.
Torbay is the planning authority for most holdings here, and it is the authority that decides whether an array on an agricultural building falls inside permitted development.
Paignton ranks 1 of 8 towns we cover in Devon on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 903 to 961, a spread of 58 kWh per kWp. On a 500 kWp array that is about 29,000 kWh a year between the strongest and weakest town in the county.
Solar already consented near TQ4
From the government's Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026. These are the schemes on record in this postcode district, which is a fair guide to how the local network has been treating export applications.
| Scheme | Operator | Capacity | Mounting | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Torbay Leisure Centre - Energy Project | Leisure Energy | 0.17 MW | Roof | Under Construction |
| South Devon College, Spots Hall - Solar Panels | South Devon College | 0.26 MW | Roof | Application Withdrawn |
| Morrisons, Totnes Road - Solar Panels | Morrisons | 0.29 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
Grid connection through National Grid Electricity Distribution
Connections around Paignton are handled by National Grid Electricity Distribution, which sets the export limit for the site. Above 3.68 kW per phase the connection runs under G99, so the export limit is agreed in advance rather than assumed. Where the local network is constrained, an export-limited connection usually still makes the scheme work, because a farm uses most of what the roof makes during the working day.
Across Devon the planning database records 248 solar schemes totalling 1451 MW, of which 90 are operational (REPD Q1 2026).
Send us the postcode
Tell us where the unit is and roughly how big the roof is. We come back with what it can carry, what it would generate against your consumption, and the three ways to pay for it.
Lenzie Consulting Ltd arranges the survey and passes your details to our MCS-certified installation partner so they can quote.
Questions about solar in Paignton
- What would a 500 kWp array produce on a farm near Paignton?
- Yes, and the figure matters more than the sunshine. At 961 kWh per kWp a year, a 500 kWp array on a Paignton holding models at around 481,000 kWh. What changes the answer is how much of that the farm uses itself. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
- Which network operator handles the connection around Paignton?
- Applications go to National Grid Electricity Distribution, who run the network across Devon. On a farm the incoming supply matters as much as their answer: a single phase supply caps what can be installed whatever the roof would take.
- What does Torbay require for solar on an agricultural building?
- Roof-mounted panels on an agricultural building often fall under permitted development, subject to limits on projection above the roof plane and to the building not being listed or in a conservation area or National Park. We confirm the position with Torbay before the design is finalised.
- Has anyone near TQ4 already done this?
- The planning database records 0 ground mounted and 3 roof mounted solar schemes in this postcode district. That matters less as proof it works and more as evidence of how the local network has treated export applications. Roof arrays under a megawatt often never appear in the database, so the real figure is higher. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026.