Solar panels for warehouses in Banbury
Sheds around Banbury tend to have more roof than the business has any other use for. We start with the covering and the structure, because a roof with five years left in it changes the answer entirely.
891 kWh per kWp a year at this latitude, so a 500 kWp array models at about 446,000 kWh. Source: EU PVGIS v5.2, SARAH3, 10 degree pitch, 14 percent system loss.
Book a roof survey in BanburyIllustrative layout for a unit of this size. Your own figures come from the roof survey.
Distribution centre solar across Oxfordshire
What a roof in Banbury actually generates
Modelled irradiation at this latitude is 1140 kWh per square metre a year in the plane of a shallow-pitched roof, which works out at 891 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.
Distribution stock around Banbury clusters on M40 J11, A361 and A422, which is where the large single-let roofs are.
We survey across the OX postcode area, starting from OX16.
West Northamptonshire is the planning authority for most sites here, and the built-up area holds a population of about 52,045, so the stock here runs to trade counters, light industrial terraces and the occasional larger shed (ONS Census 2021 built-up areas).
Banbury ranks 7 of 8 towns we cover in Oxfordshire on modelled yield, against a national mean of 886 kWh per kWp. The county runs from 891 to 913, a spread of 22 kWh per kWp. Within Oxfordshire that difference is small enough to ignore: where the building sits is not what decides this scheme, your consumption pattern is.
Grid connection through Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks 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 Oxfordshire the planning database records 149 solar schemes totalling 2544 MW, of which 31 are operational (REPD Q1 2026).
Solar already consented near OX16
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horton General Hospital - Solar Panel | Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust | 0.37 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
| Unit 2, Southam Road - Solar Panels | Logicor Logistics 101 Limited | 0.54 MW | Roof | Awaiting Construction |
| Kannegiesser, Beaumont Road - Solar Panels | Kannegiesser UK Limited | n/a | Roof | Application Submitted |
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 Banbury
- Is there enough sun in Banbury to make this work?
- Modelled at 891 kWh per kWp a year for a shallow-pitched roof at this latitude, which puts a 500 kWp array at roughly 446,000 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.
- Who do we apply to for export in Banbury?
- Capacity varies street by street, and only Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks can answer it for your connection. We ask the question early, because an export-limited offer changes the design rather than killing the scheme.
- Do we need planning permission in West Northamptonshire?
- 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 West Northamptonshire first either way.
- Has anyone near OX16 already done this?
- The planning database records 3 solar schemes in this postcode district, 3 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.