Is there enough sun around Southend-on-Sea to make this work?

Modelled at 942 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 471,000 kWh a year before shading. That array needs about 1,485 sqm of clear roof once ridge vents and walkways are allowed for. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.

Who do we apply to for export near Southend-on-Sea?

Only UK Power Networks can answer it for your connection, and on rural feeders the answer varies farm to farm. An export-limited offer usually still works, because a holding with grain drying, cooling or ventilation uses most of what it makes.

Do we need planning permission in Southend-on-Sea?

In most cases no, because panels on the roof of an agricultural building usually sit within permitted development. The exceptions are listed buildings, conservation areas, protected landscapes and arrays that stand proud of the roof. We check with Southend-on-Sea either way.

Has anyone near SS2 already done this?

The planning database records 2 ground mounted and 2 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.

Solar panels for farms in Southend-on-Sea

A Southend-on-Sea farm buys electricity at the worst rate of the day in exactly the hours its roof could be generating. Each survey records the sheet type and condition, the usable area once rooflights and vents come out, and whether the supply is single or three phase.

942 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 471,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.

Book a roof survey in Southend-on-Sea

Drawing Southend-on-Sea unit

Roof 96 x 62 m

Array 500 kWp

Yield 471,000 kWh/yr

Scale 1:500 / Rev A / SS2

Illustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.

Southend-on-Sea / Essex

Eastern arable farmland with solar arrays on farm buildings — Industrial stock of the kind we survey across East of England.

Farm building solar PV across Essex

What a farm roof near Southend-on-Sea generates

Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1206 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 942 kWh for every kWp installed (EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss). That is around 6 percent above the mean across the areas we cover, which is as strong as UK farm rooftop gets outside the south coast.

The planning record lists 2 ground mounted solar schemes in this postcode district, which is a fair guide to how the local network has treated field arrays. The typical consented scheme in this district is about 2.8 MW, with the largest at 3 MW. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026.

2 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 Southend-on-Sea is higher than the record shows.

We survey holdings across the SS postcode area, starting from SS2.

Southend-on-Sea 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.

FIG. 1 What a Southend-on-Sea roof makes, month by month

Jul produces 6.0 times what Dec does on the same roof. A 500 kWp array here models at about 471,000 kWh across the year, but it arrives unevenly, which is why we size against your summer daytime load and then look at whether storage is worth adding for the shoulder months.

Monthly figures as a table

Month	kWh per kWp	500 kWp array
Jan	25	12,500
Feb	40	20,000
Mar	75	37,500
Apr	109	54,500
May	127	63,500
Jun	130	65,000
Jul	131	65,500
Aug	111	55,500
Sep	87	43,500
Oct	53	26,500
Nov	32	16,000
Dec	22	11,000

Source: EU PVGIS v5.2

FIG. 2 Southend-on-Sea against the rest of Essex

Clacton-on-Sea973
Colchester953
Canvey Island945
Southend-on-Sea942
Basildon933
Braintree932
Chelmsford930
Grays927
Brentwood913

Southend-on-Sea ranks 4 of 10 towns we cover in Essex on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 908 to 973, a spread of 65 kWh per kWp. On a 500 kWp array that is about 32,500 kWh a year between the strongest and weakest town in the county.

Bars are zero based, so length is proportional to the figure. Where a county is flat, that is the finding: location is not the lever, consumption is. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, modelled per town

Solar already consented near SS2

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
London Southend Airport	London Southend Airport Ltd	3 MW	Ground	Revised
London Southend Airport	London Southend Airport Co.	2.5 MW	Ground	Operational
David Lloyd Health And Fitness Centre, Snakes Lane - Solar Panels	Custom Solar Limited	0.47 MW	Roof	Application Submitted
Spire Wellesley Hospital, Eastern Avenue - Solar Panels	Spire Wellesley Hospital	0.21 MW	Roof	Awaiting Construction

Grid connection through UK Power Networks

UK Power Networks operates the distribution network across Essex, so the export application goes to them. Anything larger than 3.68 kW per phase falls under G99, which means an application before commissioning rather than a notification afterwards. A constrained network is not the end of a scheme. Capping export costs little when the building already absorbs most of what the roof produces.

Across Essex the planning database records 221 solar schemes totalling 2787 MW, of which 46 are operational (REPD Q1 2026).

Book the survey

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 Southend-on-Sea

Is there enough sun around Southend-on-Sea to make this work?: Modelled at 942 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 471,000 kWh a year before shading. That array needs about 1,485 sqm of clear roof once ridge vents and walkways are allowed for. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Who do we apply to for export near Southend-on-Sea?: Only UK Power Networks can answer it for your connection, and on rural feeders the answer varies farm to farm. An export-limited offer usually still works, because a holding with grain drying, cooling or ventilation uses most of what it makes.
Do we need planning permission in Southend-on-Sea?: In most cases no, because panels on the roof of an agricultural building usually sit within permitted development. The exceptions are listed buildings, conservation areas, protected landscapes and arrays that stand proud of the roof. We check with Southend-on-Sea either way.
Has anyone near SS2 already done this?: The planning database records 2 ground mounted and 2 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.

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