Many might feel that Scotland's climate is better suited to alternative renewable energy technologies such as wind and hydro – but the country also has a significant solar resource and there’s no reason for landowners to discount this development route.

In fact, modern solar technology has many advantages, including a wide range of scale for deployment, potential for co-location with other renewable technologies and making efficient use of the electricity grid.

According to property consultancy Montagu Evans, as an opportunity for landowners, in principle, installing a solar farm could be a great way to diversify income as well as supporting decarbonisation – but there are a number of key considerations when thinking about using land for solar farm development.

Scotland has a legally binding target to deliver Net Zero emissions of all greenhouse gases by 2045, alongside a series of ambitious and challenging interim targets of at least a 75% reduction by 2030 and a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.

Furthermore the recently published Draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) places significant emphasis on supporting the transition to Net Zero and investing in reducing carbon emissions, providing significant clarity in planning policy terms for supporting renewable energy development.

Analysis undertaken by Solar Energy Scotland warned that, as of the end of 2020, Scotland had only around 3% of the UK’s total deployed solar generation capacity. Whilst small scale (eg rooftop) arrays have a role to play, the deployment of large-scale ground-mounted solar development potentially with on site battery storage will be key to achieving Scotland's Net Zero ambitions.

For landowners considering the potential for solar development, Montagu Evans suggests that the following should be key considerations in establishing the suitability of a site:

  • Proximity to and viability of an electricity grid connection;
  • Proximity of any statutory environmental designations;
  • Site not identified as being at risk of flooding (or capable of mitigation);
  • Proximity to statutory or local heritage designations (eg. listed buildings or scheduled monuments).

Assuming a viable connection is available, typically sites are leased by operators for up to 40 years, with rents subject to annual inflation linked (CPI) uplifts.

Very approximately, rents for solar PV installations are in the order of £1000/acre and battery storage £1200/Megawatt, which equates to c. £6000/acre, said the firm. Site requirements for solar can be substantial (100’s of acres) but with much more limited land requirements for battery installations.

A substantial and valuable long term income stream can be secured by tenants with strong financial covenants. These can either be held for income or packaged for sale as investments.

Montagu Evans has one of the largest teams of land and planning experts in Scotland and is well placed to advise landowners on how to maximise the benefits of solar energy development on their land.

It has recently acted on behalf of the University of St Andrews and Photon Energy to deliver a ground-mounted solar array at their Eden Campus site in Guardbridge, an integral part of an important project in the University’s strategy to improve its sustainability credentials, address required lifecycle and maintenance obligations for existing plant, and ultimately to achieve carbon neutral status.