Solar panels for warehouses in Wigan
The economics of a Wigan rooftop array turn on how much of the generation the occupier uses on site. Each survey records the cladding profile, the usable area once rooflights and plant are removed, and the export limit worth applying for.
828 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 414,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Book a roof survey in WiganIllustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.
Warehouse rooftop solar across Greater Manchester
What a roof in Wigan actually generates
Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1058 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 828 kWh for every kWp installed (EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss). That is about 7 percent below the mean across the towns we cover, so the case here leans harder on how much you use on site rather than on raw generation.
Distribution stock around Wigan clusters on M6 J25, M6 J27 and M58 J5, which is where the large single-let roofs are.
Most of the units we look at here sit in the WN postcode area.
Wigan is the planning authority for most sites here, and the built-up area holds a population of about 81,580, the size that tends to be served by mid-box last-mile units rather than national hubs (ONS Census 2021 built-up areas).
Wigan ranks 1 of 10 towns we cover in Greater Manchester on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 769 to 828, a spread of 59 kWh per kWp. On a 500 kWp array that is about 29,500 kWh a year between the strongest and weakest town in the county.
Solar already consented near WN6
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thompson House Equestrian farm | Emotion Solar One | 5 MW | Ground | Operational |
| Bradley Hall Trading Estate, Bradley Lane - Solar Panels | Industrials Propco 1 | 0.42 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
| Wrightington Hospital, Hall Lane - Solar Panels | Dalkia Facilities | 0.15 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
Grid connection through Electricity North West
Electricity North West 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 Greater Manchester the planning database records 118 solar schemes totalling 110 MW, of which 11 are operational (REPD Q1 2026).
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 Wigan
- What would a 500 kWp array produce in Wigan?
- Yes, and the number matters more than the sunshine. At 828 kWh per kWp a year, a 500 kWp array on a Wigan roof models at around 414,000 kWh. What changes the answer is how much of that you use on site rather than export. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
- Which network operator handles the connection in Wigan?
- Applications go to Electricity North West, who run the network across Greater Manchester. They decide the export limit, and we handle the G99 paperwork alongside the array design.
- What does Wigan require for rooftop solar?
- Roof-mounted panels on a commercial building usually fall under permitted development, subject to the limits on projection above the roof plane and to the building not being listed or in a conservation area. We confirm the position with Wigan before the design is finalised.
- Has anyone near WN6 already done this?
- The planning database records 3 solar schemes in this postcode district, 2 of them roof mounted. That matters less as proof that it works and more as evidence of how the local network has been treating export applications. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, Q1 2026.