Is there enough sun in Cwmbrân to make this work?

Modelled at 903 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 452,000 kWh a year before shading. That array needs about 1,485 sqm of clear roof once walkways and setbacks are allowed for. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.

Do we need planning permission in Torfaen?

In most cases no, because roof-mounted panels on commercial buildings sit within permitted development. The exceptions are listed buildings, conservation areas and arrays that stand proud of the roof plane. We check with Torfaen first either way.

Has anyone near NP44 already done this?

The planning database records 5 solar schemes in this postcode district, 1 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.

Solar panels for warehouses in Cwmbrân

What makes a Cwmbrân scheme work is rarely the panels. It is the condition of the roof underneath them. The survey measures the roof, not the postcode: cladding profile, purlin centres, remaining sheet life and the load the frame can take.

903 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 452,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.

Book a roof survey in Cwmbrân

Drawing Cwmbrân unit

Roof 96 x 62 m

Array 500 kWp

Yield 452,000 kWh/yr

Scale 1:500 / Rev A / NP44

Illustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.

Cwmbrân / Newport

South Wales valley industrial estate with solar arrays on several unit roofs — Industrial stock of the kind we survey across Wales.

Logistics solar PV across Newport

What a roof in Cwmbrân actually generates

Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1159 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 903 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 towns we cover, so the case rests on your consumption pattern rather than on the weather.

Surveys run across NP postcodes, NP44 outward.

Torfaen is the planning authority for most sites here, and the built-up area holds a population of about 47,090, so the stock here runs to trade counters, light industrial terraces and the occasional larger shed (ONS Census 2021 built-up areas).

FIG. 1 What a Cwmbrân roof makes, month by month

Jun produces 6.0 times what Dec does on the same roof. A 500 kWp array here models at about 452,000 kWh across the year, but it arrives unevenly, which is why we size against your summer daytime load and then look at whether storage is worth adding for the shoulder months.

Monthly figures as a table

Month	kWh per kWp	500 kWp array
Jan	24	12,000
Feb	39	19,500
Mar	73	36,500
Apr	105	52,500
May	124	62,000
Jun	126	63,000
Jul	126	63,000
Aug	105	52,500
Sep	83	41,500
Oct	50	25,000
Nov	29	14,500
Dec	21	10,500

Source: EU PVGIS v5.2

FIG. 2 Cwmbrân against the rest of Newport

Maindee910
Caerleon905
Cwmbrân903
Pontypool887

Cwmbrân ranks 3 of 4 towns we cover in Newport on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 887 to 910, a spread of 23 kWh per kWp. Within Newport that difference is small enough to ignore: where the building sits is not what decides this scheme, your consumption pattern is.

Bars are zero based, so length is proportional to the figure. Where a county is flat, that is the finding: location is not the lever, consumption is. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, modelled per town

Solar already consented near NP44

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
Cwrt Henllys Farm	Lightsource Renewable Energy	5 MW	Ground	Operational
Ty Coch Hollybush Way	Torfaen CBC	3 MW	Ground	Awaiting Construction
EFG Food And Technology Park	Eurofoods UK	0.5 MW	Roof	Awaiting Construction
Pentre Bach Solar Farm	Elgin Energy EsCo Ltd	20 MW	Ground	Application Submitted
The Grange University Hospital, Caerleon Road - Solar Car Ports	Vital Energi Utilities Ltd	0.72 MW	Ground	Awaiting Construction

Book the survey

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 Cwmbrân

Is there enough sun in Cwmbrân to make this work?: Modelled at 903 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 452,000 kWh a year before shading. That array needs about 1,485 sqm of clear roof once walkways and setbacks are allowed for. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Do we need planning permission in Torfaen?: In most cases no, because roof-mounted panels on commercial buildings sit within permitted development. The exceptions are listed buildings, conservation areas and arrays that stand proud of the roof plane. We check with Torfaen first either way.
Has anyone near NP44 already done this?: The planning database records 5 solar schemes in this postcode district, 1 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.

Nearby

All Newport locations