Solar panels for farms in Mansfield
Around Mansfield the constraint is rarely the roof. It is the incoming supply and what the network will accept back. The survey starts on the covering: fibre cement or steel, its remaining life, the purlin spacing and what the frame will carry.
852 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 426,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Book a roof survey in MansfieldIllustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.
Solar for agricultural buildings across Nottinghamshire
What a farm roof near Mansfield generates
Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1087 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 852 kWh for every kWp installed (EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss). That is about 4 percent below the mean across the areas we cover, so the case here rests on using the output on the holding rather than exporting it.
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 Mansfield is higher than the record shows.
Surveys run across NG postcodes, NG18 outward.
Mansfield 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.
Mansfield ranks 6 of 7 towns we cover in Nottinghamshire on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 842 to 874, a spread of 32 kWh per kWp. Within Nottinghamshire that difference is small enough to ignore: where the building sits is not what decides this scheme, your consumption pattern is.
Grid connection through National Grid Electricity Distribution
National Grid Electricity Distribution operates the distribution network across Nottinghamshire, 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 Nottinghamshire the planning database records 164 solar schemes totalling 3700 MW, of which 35 are operational (REPD Q1 2026).
Solar already consented near NG18
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sutton Road - Solar Panels | WM Morrisons Supermarkets Plc | 0.41 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
| Linney Group, Adamsway - Solar Panels | W & J Linney | 0.2 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
| The Samworth Church Academy, Sherwood Hall Road - Solar Panels | eEnergy Group PLC | 0.32 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
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 Mansfield
- Is there enough sun around Mansfield to make this work?
- Modelled at 852 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 426,000 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 Mansfield?
- Only National Grid Electricity Distribution 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 Mansfield?
- 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 Mansfield either way.
- Has anyone near NG18 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.