Solar For Farms

Yes, solar panels are classed as plant and machinery which means they are eligible for capital allowances. So, the capital cost can be written off against profits in the first year.

If we take a farming partnership paying 40% tax as an example, it's possible to claim back from HMRC 40% of the cost of the solar installation in the next tax return. This means a £35,000 investment effectively costs the business just £21,000.

For a farm operating as a Limited Company and paying 25% corporation tax, the principles are similar. A £100,000 solar PV system allows a UK limited company to deduct the full £100,000 from taxable profits in year one, typically saving £25,000 in corporation tax and reducing the effective cost to £75,000.

Please seek specific advice from your accountants or tax specialists to establish the specific scenario for your business.

Grant funding has historically been available to support the adoption of solar PV within the agricultural sector, alongside wider farm diversification and sustainability initiatives.

At the time of writing (February 2026), we are not aware of any grant schemes currently open to new applications for on-farm solar PV installations. Funding availability can change, so we recommend confirming the current position with your surveyor, rural consultant or adviser.

Whether grant funding is available or not, solar PV continues to deliver a strong commercial case in its own right. Should grant schemes reopen in the future, engaging an experienced agricultural solar specialist early is key to ensuring system design, sizing and specification maximise both grant compliance and long-term performance.

Batteries can be powerful - but they’re not always necessary.  Battery storage can add value, but only in the right scenarios.  Where batteries often make sense:

• High evening or overnight energy use
• Sites with export limitations
• Where farms want resilience and flexibility
• Future EV or electric equipment plans

Where batteries may not stack up (yet):

• Sites already achieving high daytime self-consumption
• Where grid export is available and paid
• Smaller systems with limited surplus

Yes

Yes, however, for a large-scale ground mounted solar PV system there are lots of considerations.  These include the requirement for full planning permission and also how you get the power from the panel location into your supply or into the grid.  In many cases farm buildings provide a great platform for solar PV, typically with less onerous planning requirements and more easily accessible electrical infrastructure.

Varies

There are lots of factors that influence the cost of installing large-scale ground mounted solar PV systems, including the costs to connect the system to the grid, if you are not connecting directly into a supply already in place. 

The systems that Mypower installs are connected into customer’s supply point.  This provides greater commercial benefit as the solar electricity generated at the equivalent unit rate of 4-5 pence per kWh displaces grid supplied electricity at typical daytime grid rate 20-30 pence per kWh (in 2026).  The cost of a solar PV system is typically recovered within the first 3-5 years of operation, sometimes less depending on the price of the grid supplied electricity it is replacing.  There is also further commercial opportunity via tax benefits under the capital allowances scheme.

Yes 

Yes, solar PV is one of the lowest cost ways of generating clean electricity.  The energy source (the sun) is free, so once the system has paid for itself and the minimal ongoing maintenance costs are accounted for, solar PV can be highly profitable.