Solar panels for farms in Wells
Most holdings around Wells already own the best generating site they will ever have, and it is the roof of the shed they built for something else. The survey starts on the covering: fibre cement or steel, its remaining life, the purlin spacing and what the frame will carry.
899 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 450,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Book a roof survey in WellsIllustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.
Solar for agricultural buildings across Somerset
What a farm roof near Wells generates
Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1149 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 899 kWh for every kWp installed (EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss). That sits within a few percent of the mean across the areas we cover, so what decides the scheme is your own demand pattern rather than the latitude.
The planning record lists 4 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 2.4 MW, with the largest at 5.4 MW. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026.
Surveys run across BA postcodes, BA5 outward.
Mendip 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.
Wells ranks 7 of 8 towns we cover in Somerset on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 894 to 934, a spread of 40 kWh per kWp. Within Somerset 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 is the network operator here, and their answer on export capacity shapes the design. Any commercial array above 3.68 kW per phase connects under G99 rather than G98, and the application fixes what you are allowed to push back onto the network. If the local network is tight, limiting export rarely breaks the case here: most of the generation is consumed on site while the building is working.
Across Somerset the planning database records 223 solar schemes totalling 1574 MW, of which 79 are operational (REPD Q1 2026).
Solar already consented near BA5
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitts Farm | Lightsource Renewable Energy | 1.5 MW | Ground | Revised |
| Crapnell Farm Solar Farm | Lightsource Renewable Energy | 5.4 MW | Ground | Operational |
| Pitts Farm | Lightsource BP | 2.6 MW | Ground | Operational |
| Charlie Bighams Quarry Kitchen, Dulcote Hill Lane - Solar Array | Charlie Bighams Quarry Kitchen | 2.2 MW | Ground | 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 Wells
- Is there enough sun around Wells to make this work?
- Modelled at 899 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 450,000 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 Wells?
- 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 Mendip?
- 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 Mendip either way.
- Has anyone near BA5 already done this?
- The planning database records 4 ground mounted and 0 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.