UK unsubsidised solar build-out accelerates as ‘massive’ pipeline additions are revealed

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
UK investor Next Energy Solar Fund energised one of the UK's first subsidy-free solar farms last year (pictured) and has plans to complete more this year. Image: NESF.

The UK is witnessing an acceleration of its subsidy-free solar build out, just as the country’s pipeline of utility-scale projects observed a record month for additions.

Having experienced something of a pandemic-driven hiatus earlier this year, a number of solar developers in the UK have now returned to action, either bringing projects into advanced stages of planning or breaking ground.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Yesterday (30 September) Hive Energy, one of the developers behind the mammoth Cleve Hill Solar Farm project planned for the UK’s south-east coast, confirmed construction work had started on a 13MW subsidy-free solar park in Rugby, Warwickshire. That site is expected to complete by the end of the year and forms part of a wider portfolio of subsidy-free solar projects Hive is developing.

Meanwhile, fellow developer Elgin Energy was particularly busy in September, confirming it was to develop a 38MW solar array on the site of a former World War Two airfield in Northamptonshire having already formed a joint-venture with prolific solar investor Foresight Group to develop 200MW of subsidy-free PV.

Bluefield Solar Income Fund (BSIF) also confirmed late last month that it had amassed a proprietary pipeline of grid-parity solar projects with a combined capacity in excess of 350MWp that it was now aiming to advance.

“The subsidy-free market in the UK is now with us,” John Rennocks, the investor’s chairman, said.

The flurry of activity also coincides with a notable uptick in new projects entering planning. Writing for UK sister publication Solar Power Portal, Solar Media head of market research Finlay Colville revealed that more than 1GW of new large-scale solar sites had entered the pipeline in September 2020, a new monthly record for capacity to enter planning.

This new capacity was spread across 28 sites and includes a prospective 350MW solar farm proposed by energy giant EDF.

The UK’s total solar pipeline now stands just shy of 12GW, around one-third of which has come to the fore in the last six months alone.

“This is massive on all counts, and something nobody saw coming 12 months ago,” Colville wrote.

The full details of all pipeline projects making up the 11.6GW pipeline in the UK can be accessed by subscribing to the UK Large-Scale Solar Farms: The Post-Subsidy Prospect List report, details of which are available on the link here.

25 November 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Large Scale Solar Central and Eastern Europe continues to be the place to leverage a network that has been made over more than 10 years, to build critical partnerships to develop solar projects throughout the region.

Read Next

May 30, 2025
Companies delayed or cancelled US$14 billion in investments in clean energy projects in the US in the first four months of this year.
May 28, 2025
Arevon Energy has finalised US$98 million in tax equity financing for a 265MW portfolio currently under construction in Indiana.
May 28, 2025
In 2024, 20 million people improved their access to energy through the acquisition of solar energy kits (SEKs), according to GOGLA.
May 28, 2025
QIC, one of Australia’s largest infrastructure fund managers, has completed an AU$2 billion refinancing and equity raise for Pacific Energy.
May 23, 2025
The US House of Representatives has passed a bill slashing tax credit provisions for clean energy projects.
Premium
May 23, 2025
The PPA is a 'cornerstone' of the European renewables space, according to speakers at Solar Media's Renewables Procurement & Revenue Summit.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
June 17, 2025
Napa, USA
Upcoming Webinars
June 30, 2025
10am PST / 6pm BST
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 8, 2025
Asia