Some of the best space for new solar in England and Wales is already built: the roofs of its factories and warehouses. We took the Valuation Office Agency’s latest floorspace statistics for every factory, workshop and warehouse in England and Wales, compared them with official figures for the solar already installed in each area, and estimated how much rooftop solar each council could host. Every number below can be checked in our methodology and the free dataset.

Got a factory or warehouse roof? These figures describe whole council areas. For your own building, see our guides to warehouse solar panels and solar panels for factories, or check commercial solar panel grants open to businesses now. We introduce you to one suitable installer for a free quote.

The headline numbers

317 km²

Factory and warehouse floorspace in England and Wales (VOA, 31 March 2026)

9.9 GW

Solar that panels on a quarter of that roof space could hold (GBE estimate)

19.8 GW

At half the roof space: about as much as all 20.5 GW of solar of every kind installed in England and Wales by the end of 2025

3.5m

Homes’ worth of electricity a year from the quarter-roof scenario (8.8 TWh, GBE estimate)

Estimates are GBE calculations from official data: floorspace × share of roof covered ÷ 8,000 m² per MWp (the conservative end of BRE’s rule of thumb) × DESNZ regional solar load factor. Homes equivalent uses Ofgem’s typical medium electricity use of 2,500 kWh a year. How we did it.

Key findings

317 km² of factory and warehouse floorspace. The Valuation Office Agency records 316.9 million m² of factories, workshops, warehouses, distribution sheds and large industrial units in England and Wales. That is about 31,700 hectares.
Half those roofs could almost match all the solar installed so far. Panels on a quarter of that space could hold about 9.9 GW and make 8.8 TWh a year, the electricity 3.5 million typical homes use. On half, about 19.8 GW: 97% of the 20.5 GW of solar installed in England and Wales by the end of 2025, counting homes, farms and solar parks (GBE estimates).
Birmingham has the most. Birmingham has 5.9 km² of factory and warehouse floorspace, the most of any council. A quarter of it could hold about 185 MW of panels, 2.9 times the 65 MW of solar the area has now. The top five are Birmingham, West Northamptonshire, North Northamptonshire, Leeds and Wakefield.
The roofs are in the North and Midlands; most of the solar is in the South and East. The North West has the most factory and warehouse floorspace of any region (46.7 km²), and the North and Midlands together hold 60% of the total. In the North West, Yorkshire and The Humber, London and the North East, a quarter of those roofs could hold more solar than the whole area has installed today. By contrast, 58% of the solar installed so far is in London, the South East, the South West and the East of England. The South West, with the most (4,375 MW), could add 826 MW this way.
The widest gaps. Among the 33 councils with at least 2 km² of factory and warehouse floorspace, Sandwell stands out: a quarter of its roofs could hold 5.5 times the solar it has today (120 MW against 22 MW). Rochdale (3.2×), Bradford (3.2×) and Dudley (3.0×) follow.

Commercial rooftop solar potential by local authority

All 318 councils in England and Wales, ranked by factory and warehouse floorspace. Click a column heading to sort, or type your council below. The top 50 show first.

Find your council

#	Local authority	Region / nation	Floorspace (km²)	Potential at 25% (MWp)*	At 50% (MWp)*	GWh a year at 25%*	Homes’ worth at 25%*	Solar installed (MW, 2025)	Potential vs installed*
1	Birmingham	West Midlands	5.9	185	370	168	67,100	65	2.9×
2	West Northamptonshire	East Midlands	5.7	179	358	163	65,000	224	0.8×
3	North Northamptonshire	East Midlands	5.2	164	328	149	59,600	184	0.9×
4	Leeds	Yorkshire and The Humber	4.9	153	306	134	53,700	77	2.0×
5	Wakefield	Yorkshire and The Humber	4.2	131	261	115	45,900	50	2.6×
6	Sandwell	West Midlands	3.8	120	239	108	43,300	22	5.5×
7	North Yorkshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.8	118	237	104	41,600	340	0.3×
8	Bradford	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.8	118	237	104	41,600	37	3.2×
9	Kirklees	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.5	111	222	97	39,000	41	2.7×
10	County Durham	North East	3.5	110	220	96	38,400	93	1.2×
11	Sheffield	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.1	98	196	86	34,500	49	2.0×
12	Milton Keynes	South East	3.1	97	195	91	36,300	82	1.2×
13	Doncaster	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.0	93	186	82	32,700	67	1.4×
14	North West Leicestershire	East Midlands	2.9	92	183	83	33,300	73	1.3×
15	Somerset	South West	2.9	91	182	82	32,700	566	0.2×
16	East Riding of Yorkshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	2.7	83	166	73	29,200	226	0.4×
17	Cheshire East	North West	2.6	81	162	69	27,700	85	0.9×
18	Rotherham	Yorkshire and The Humber	2.5	80	159	70	28,000	35	2.3×
19	Wiltshire	South West	2.5	79	158	71	28,500	621	0.1×
20	Rochdale	North West	2.5	79	158	67	27,000	24	3.2×
21	Stoke-on-Trent	West Midlands	2.4	75	151	68	27,300	39	2.0×
22	South Gloucestershire	South West	2.4	75	151	68	27,100	175	0.4×
23	Kingston upon Hull	Yorkshire and The Humber	2.2	70	139	61	24,500	37	1.9×
24	Bristol	South West	2.2	69	138	62	24,800	55	1.3×
25	Peterborough	East of England	2.2	68	135	63	25,200	55	1.2×
26	Central Bedfordshire	East of England	2.2	67	134	63	25,000	121	0.6×
27	Dudley	West Midlands	2.1	66	133	60	24,000	22	3.0×
28	Coventry	West Midlands	2.1	66	132	60	23,900	26	2.6×
29	Swindon	South West	2.1	66	132	59	23,700	208	0.3×
30	Wigan	North West	2.1	65	130	56	22,200	32	2.0×
31	Bolton	North West	2.1	64	129	55	22,000	30	2.1×
32	Cheshire West and Chester	North West	2.0	63	125	54	21,400	71	0.9×
33	Leicester	East Midlands	2.0	62	125	57	22,700	33	1.9×
34	Telford and Wrekin	West Midlands	2.0	62	125	57	22,600	81	0.8×
35	Walsall	West Midlands	2.0	62	125	56	22,600	18	3.4×
36	Wolverhampton	West Midlands	2.0	61	123	55	22,200	32	1.9×
37	Trafford	North West	2.0	61	123	52	21,000	18	3.4×
38	Bedford	East of England	2.0	61	122	57	22,700	89	0.7×
39	Oldham	North West	1.9	61	122	52	20,900	18	3.5×
40	Warrington	North West	1.9	61	121	52	20,800	30	2.0×
41	Gateshead	North East	1.9	60	120	53	21,000	16	3.7×
42	Buckinghamshire	South East	1.9	58	117	54	21,700	240	0.2×
43	Liverpool	North West	1.9	58	116	50	19,900	33	1.8×
44	Barnsley	Yorkshire and The Humber	1.9	58	116	51	20,400	36	1.6×
45	Harborough	East Midlands	1.8	57	115	52	20,900	53	1.1×
46	North Lincolnshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	1.8	57	115	50	20,100	119	0.5×
47	Manchester	North West	1.8	57	114	49	19,600	41	1.4×
48	Calderdale	Yorkshire and The Humber	1.8	57	114	50	20,100	19	2.9×
49	Sunderland	North East	1.8	56	113	49	19,700	45	1.3×
50	Cumberland	North West	1.8	56	113	48	19,300	86	0.7×
51	North Warwickshire	West Midlands	1.8	56	112	51	20,400	32	1.7×
52	East Staffordshire	West Midlands	1.7	54	109	49	19,600	62	0.9×
53	Thurrock	East of England	1.7	54	107	50	19,900	175	0.3×
54	Ealing	London	1.7	52	104	42	16,600	18	2.9×
55	Northumberland	North East	1.6	51	102	45	17,900	65	0.8×
56	Flintshire / Sir y Fflint	Wales	1.6	50	101	45	17,900	112	0.4×
57	Rugby	West Midlands	1.6	50	100	45	18,200	87	0.6×
58	Knowsley	North West	1.6	49	99	42	16,900	19	2.5×
59	Cornwall	South West	1.6	49	99	44	17,800	683	0.1×
60	Blackburn with Darwen	North West	1.6	49	98	42	16,800	16	3.1×
61	Dorset	South West	1.5	48	95	43	17,200	476	0.1×
62	Ashfield	East Midlands	1.5	47	94	43	17,000	20	2.3×
63	Salford	North West	1.5	46	93	40	15,900	22	2.1×
64	Halton	North West	1.5	46	92	39	15,700	14	3.4×
65	Shropshire	West Midlands	1.5	46	91	41	16,500	317	0.1×
66	Stockton-on-Tees	North East	1.4	45	90	39	15,800	33	1.4×
67	West Suffolk	East of England	1.4	45	90	42	16,700	216	0.2×
68	Derby	East Midlands	1.4	44	88	40	16,100	27	1.6×
69	St. Helens	North West	1.4	44	87	37	14,900	17	2.5×
70	Tameside	North West	1.4	42	85	36	14,500	24	1.7×
71	Cherwell	South East	1.3	42	84	39	15,600	141	0.3×
72	East Suffolk	East of England	1.3	41	82	38	15,300	164	0.3×
73	Wrexham / Wrecsam	Wales	1.3	41	82	36	14,500	51	0.8×
74	Herefordshire	West Midlands	1.3	41	82	37	14,800	128	0.3×
75	Huntingdonshire	East of England	1.3	40	80	37	14,900	162	0.2×
76	Caerphilly / Caerffili	Wales	1.3	40	79	35	14,000	72	0.5×
77	Bassetlaw	East Midlands	1.3	39	79	36	14,300	201	0.2×
78	Test Valley	South East	1.3	39	78	36	14,600	253	0.2×
79	Nottingham	East Midlands	1.2	39	78	36	14,200	38	1.0×
80	Rhondda Cynon Taf / Rhondda Cynon Taf	Wales	1.2	39	78	35	13,800	70	0.6×
81	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole	South West	1.2	39	78	35	14,000	140	0.3×
82	Amber Valley	East Midlands	1.2	37	75	34	13,600	39	0.9×
83	West Lancashire	North West	1.2	37	74	32	12,700	28	1.3×
84	Stockport	North West	1.2	37	74	32	12,600	28	1.3×
85	Hinckley and Bosworth	East Midlands	1.2	36	73	33	13,200	61	0.6×
86	Bolsover	East Midlands	1.1	36	71	32	12,900	27	1.3×
87	Charnwood	East Midlands	1.1	35	70	32	12,800	87	0.4×
88	Brent	London	1.1	34	69	28	11,000	14	2.5×
89	Wychavon	West Midlands	1.1	34	68	31	12,300	226	0.2×
90	Basildon	East of England	1.1	34	68	31	12,600	36	0.9×
91	Enfield	London	1.0	33	65	26	10,500	14	2.3×
92	Wirral	North West	1.0	32	65	28	11,100	24	1.4×
93	Hillingdon	London	1.0	32	65	26	10,300	16	2.1×
94	Stafford	West Midlands	1.0	32	64	29	11,700	25	1.3×
95	Hounslow	London	1.0	32	64	26	10,200	18	1.8×
96	Cardiff / Caerdydd	Wales	1.0	32	64	28	11,300	46	0.7×
97	Bexley	London	1.0	31	62	25	10,000	14	2.2×
98	North Tyneside	North East	1.0	31	62	27	10,800	22	1.4×
99	Dartford	South East	1.0	30	61	28	11,300	16	1.9×
100	Warwick	West Midlands	1.0	30	60	27	10,900	64	0.5×
101	Newport / Casnewydd	Wales	1.0	30	60	27	10,700	112	0.3×
102	Lichfield	West Midlands	1.0	30	60	27	10,900	17	1.8×
103	Fenland	East of England	1.0	30	59	28	11,100	48	0.6×
104	Nuneaton and Bedworth	West Midlands	0.9	30	59	27	10,700	12	2.5×
105	Barking and Dagenham	London	0.9	29	59	23	9,400	12	2.4×
106	Newcastle upon Tyne	North East	0.9	29	58	26	10,200	22	1.4×
107	King's Lynn and West Norfolk	East of England	0.9	29	58	27	10,800	137	0.2×
108	South Ribble	North West	0.9	29	58	25	10,000	17	1.7×
109	Westmorland and Furness	North West	0.9	28	57	24	9,700	79	0.4×
110	Swale	South East	0.9	28	57	26	10,600	448	0.1×
111	Breckland	East of England	0.9	28	56	26	10,400	102	0.3×
112	Burnley	North West	0.9	28	56	24	9,600	8	3.4×
113	Mid Suffolk	East of England	0.9	28	56	26	10,400	49	0.6×
114	Newcastle-under-Lyme	West Midlands	0.9	28	55	25	10,000	18	1.6×
115	Braintree	East of England	0.9	27	55	26	10,200	155	0.2×
116	Medway	South East	0.9	27	54	25	10,100	35	0.8×
117	Tewkesbury	South West	0.9	27	54	24	9,700	63	0.4×
118	Tonbridge and Malling	South East	0.8	26	52	24	9,700	30	0.9×
119	Redditch	West Midlands	0.8	26	52	24	9,400	9	3.0×
120	Bury	North West	0.8	26	52	22	8,800	13	2.0×
121	Stratford-on-Avon	West Midlands	0.8	26	51	23	9,300	211	0.1×
122	North East Lincolnshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	0.8	26	51	22	9,000	63	0.4×
123	Cannock Chase	West Midlands	0.8	25	51	23	9,200	11	2.4×
124	Stroud	South West	0.8	25	51	23	9,100	73	0.3×
125	Blaby	East Midlands	0.8	25	50	23	9,200	18	1.4×
126	West Berkshire	South East	0.8	25	50	24	9,400	49	0.5×
127	Chesterfield	East Midlands	0.8	25	50	23	9,100	40	0.6×
128	Powys / Powys	Wales	0.8	25	50	22	8,800	56	0.4×
129	Erewash	East Midlands	0.8	25	50	23	9,000	13	1.9×
130	South Kesteven	East Midlands	0.8	25	49	22	8,900	135	0.2×
131	South Staffordshire	West Midlands	0.8	25	49	22	8,900	29	0.9×
132	Darlington	North East	0.8	24	48	21	8,300	56	0.4×
133	Plymouth	South West	0.8	24	47	21	8,500	41	0.6×
134	Sefton	North West	0.8	24	47	20	8,000	19	1.2×
135	Torfaen / Tor-faen	Wales	0.8	24	47	21	8,300	23	1.0×
136	Preston	North West	0.7	23	46	20	7,900	25	0.9×
137	Hyndburn	North West	0.7	23	46	20	7,900	10	2.3×
138	Swansea / Abertawe	Wales	0.7	23	46	20	8,100	75	0.3×
139	Slough	South East	0.7	22	44	21	8,200	9	2.5×
140	Pendle	North West	0.7	22	44	19	7,400	10	2.1×
141	Basingstoke and Deane	South East	0.7	22	43	20	8,100	80	0.3×
142	Welwyn Hatfield	East of England	0.7	22	43	20	8,000	11	2.0×
143	Solihull	West Midlands	0.7	22	43	19	7,800	19	1.1×
144	Luton	East of England	0.7	21	43	20	8,000	12	1.8×
145	Tamworth	West Midlands	0.7	21	43	19	7,700	7	3.0×
146	Bridgend / Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr	Wales	0.7	21	42	19	7,500	46	0.5×
147	South Derbyshire	East Midlands	0.7	21	42	19	7,700	40	0.5×
148	Harlow	East of England	0.7	21	42	19	7,800	7	3.1×
149	High Peak	East Midlands	0.7	21	41	19	7,500	9	2.2×
150	Carmarthenshire / Sir Gaerfyrddin	Wales	0.7	20	41	18	7,200	210	0.1×
151	Newham	London	0.6	20	41	16	6,500	10	2.0×
152	South Holland	East Midlands	0.6	20	40	18	7,400	98	0.2×
153	North Somerset	South West	0.6	20	40	18	7,300	109	0.2×
154	Crawley	South East	0.6	20	40	19	7,500	11	1.8×
155	Norwich	East of England	0.6	20	40	19	7,400	15	1.3×
156	East Devon	South West	0.6	20	39	18	7,100	141	0.1×
157	Wyre Forest	West Midlands	0.6	20	39	18	7,100	13	1.5×
158	Portsmouth	South East	0.6	19	39	18	7,200	19	1.0×
159	South Cambridgeshire	East of England	0.6	19	39	18	7,200	305	0.1×
160	West Oxfordshire	South East	0.6	19	38	18	7,200	119	0.2×
161	Reading	South East	0.6	19	38	18	7,100	14	1.3×
162	East Lindsey	East Midlands	0.6	19	38	17	6,900	178	0.1×
163	North Kesteven	East Midlands	0.6	19	38	17	6,900	175	0.1×
164	Neath Port Talbot / Castell-nedd Port Talbot	Wales	0.6	19	37	16	6,600	45	0.4×
165	Vale of White Horse	South East	0.6	18	37	17	6,900	173	0.1×
166	Rossendale	North West	0.6	18	37	16	6,300	9	2.0×
167	Gloucester	South West	0.6	18	36	16	6,500	16	1.1×
168	Havering	London	0.6	18	36	14	5,800	18	1.0×
169	North Hertfordshire	East of England	0.6	18	36	17	6,700	43	0.4×
170	Middlesbrough	North East	0.6	18	36	16	6,300	13	1.3×
171	Eastleigh	South East	0.6	18	36	17	6,600	35	0.5×
172	Maidstone	South East	0.6	18	35	16	6,600	37	0.5×
173	Southampton	South East	0.6	18	35	16	6,600	21	0.8×
174	New Forest	South East	0.6	18	35	16	6,600	82	0.2×
175	Lancaster	North West	0.6	17	35	15	6,000	29	0.6×
176	Babergh	East of England	0.6	17	34	16	6,400	26	0.7×
177	North East Derbyshire	East Midlands	0.5	17	34	15	6,200	65	0.3×
178	Chorley	North West	0.5	17	34	15	5,800	17	1.0×
179	West Lindsey	East Midlands	0.5	17	34	15	6,200	60	0.3×
180	Broadland	East of England	0.5	17	34	16	6,300	60	0.3×
181	Dacorum	East of England	0.5	17	34	16	6,200	30	0.6×
182	Wealden	South East	0.5	17	33	16	6,200	100	0.2×
183	Blackpool	North West	0.5	16	33	14	5,600	8	2.0×
184	Ashford	South East	0.5	16	33	15	6,100	50	0.3×
185	Merton	London	0.5	16	32	13	5,200	11	1.5×
186	South Tyneside	North East	0.5	16	32	14	5,700	13	1.2×
187	Boston	East Midlands	0.5	16	32	15	5,900	113	0.1×
188	Horsham	South East	0.5	16	32	15	6,000	73	0.2×
189	Worcester	West Midlands	0.5	16	32	15	5,800	13	1.3×
190	Colchester	East of England	0.5	16	32	15	6,000	202	0.1×
191	Ipswich	East of England	0.5	16	32	15	6,000	19	0.8×
192	Broxbourne	East of England	0.5	15	31	14	5,800	7	2.2×
193	Bromsgrove	West Midlands	0.5	15	31	14	5,600	14	1.1×
194	Mid Sussex	South East	0.5	15	30	14	5,600	40	0.4×
195	Croydon	London	0.5	15	30	12	4,800	22	0.7×
196	South Oxfordshire	South East	0.5	15	30	14	5,600	161	0.1×
197	Newark and Sherwood	East Midlands	0.5	15	30	14	5,500	220	0.1×
198	Chelmsford	East of England	0.5	15	30	14	5,500	51	0.3×
199	Redcar and Cleveland	North East	0.5	15	29	13	5,200	20	0.7×
200	Forest of Dean	South West	0.5	15	29	13	5,300	132	0.1×
201	Cotswold	South West	0.5	15	29	13	5,300	99	0.1×
202	East Hampshire	South East	0.5	14	29	13	5,400	66	0.2×
203	Blaenau Gwent / Blaenau Gwent	Wales	0.5	14	29	13	5,100	30	0.5×
204	Monmouthshire / Sir Fynwy	Wales	0.5	14	28	13	5,000	93	0.2×
205	South Norfolk	East of England	0.5	14	28	13	5,200	117	0.1×
206	Teignbridge	South West	0.5	14	28	13	5,100	50	0.3×
207	Fareham	South East	0.4	14	28	13	5,200	39	0.4×
208	Winchester	South East	0.4	14	28	13	5,200	140	0.1×
209	Haringey	London	0.4	14	28	11	4,400	9	1.5×
210	Great Yarmouth	East of England	0.4	14	27	13	5,100	32	0.4×
211	Mid Devon	South West	0.4	14	27	12	4,900	115	0.1×
212	North Norfolk	East of England	0.4	14	27	13	5,000	196	0.1×
213	Exeter	South West	0.4	13	27	12	4,800	27	0.5×
214	Tendring	East of England	0.4	13	27	12	5,000	92	0.1×
215	North Devon	South West	0.4	13	27	12	4,800	143	0.1×
216	Mansfield	East Midlands	0.4	13	26	12	4,800	58	0.2×
217	East Hertfordshire	East of England	0.4	13	26	12	4,800	24	0.5×
218	East Cambridgeshire	East of England	0.4	13	26	12	4,800	296	0.0×
219	Staffordshire Moorlands	West Midlands	0.4	13	25	11	4,600	36	0.3×
220	Greenwich	London	0.4	13	25	10	4,000	16	0.8×
221	Wokingham	South East	0.4	13	25	12	4,700	58	0.2×
222	Arun	South East	0.4	12	25	12	4,700	76	0.2×
223	Chichester	South East	0.4	12	25	12	4,600	89	0.1×
224	Bath and North East Somerset	South West	0.4	12	25	11	4,500	57	0.2×
225	South Hams	South West	0.4	12	25	11	4,500	149	0.1×
226	Isle of Wight	South East	0.4	12	25	11	4,600	102	0.1×
227	Gwynedd / Gwynedd	Wales	0.4	12	25	11	4,400	67	0.2×
228	Waltham Forest	London	0.4	12	25	10	3,900	14	0.9×
229	Uttlesford	East of England	0.4	12	24	11	4,500	88	0.1×
230	York	Yorkshire and The Humber	0.4	12	24	11	4,200	24	0.5×
231	Rushcliffe	East Midlands	0.4	12	24	11	4,400	75	0.2×
232	Southwark	London	0.4	12	24	10	3,900	12	1.0×
233	Wyre	North West	0.4	12	24	10	4,100	27	0.4×
234	Havant	South East	0.4	12	24	11	4,400	19	0.6×
235	Hartlepool	North East	0.4	12	23	10	4,100	76	0.2×
236	Gedling	East Midlands	0.4	12	23	11	4,200	21	0.6×
237	Vale of Glamorgan / Bro Morgannwg	Wales	0.4	12	23	10	4,100	94	0.1×
238	Maldon	East of England	0.4	12	23	11	4,300	46	0.2×
239	Thanet	South East	0.4	12	23	11	4,300	56	0.2×
240	Denbighshire / Sir Ddinbych	Wales	0.4	11	22	10	4,000	27	0.4×
241	Broxtowe	East Midlands	0.4	11	22	10	4,000	22	0.5×
242	Rochford	East of England	0.4	11	22	10	4,100	96	0.1×
243	Sevenoaks	South East	0.3	11	22	10	4,100	17	0.7×
244	Epping Forest	East of England	0.3	11	22	10	4,000	14	0.8×
245	Tower Hamlets	London	0.3	11	22	9	3,500	9	1.2×
246	Oadby and Wigston	East Midlands	0.3	11	22	10	3,900	7	1.5×
247	Sutton	London	0.3	11	21	9	3,400	12	0.9×
248	Pembrokeshire / Sir Benfro	Wales	0.3	11	21	9	3,800	249	0.0×
249	Southend-on-Sea	East of England	0.3	11	21	10	4,000	12	0.9×
250	Lincoln	East Midlands	0.3	10	21	10	3,800	10	1.1×
251	Lewes	South East	0.3	10	21	10	3,900	26	0.4×
252	Bromley	London	0.3	10	21	8	3,300	20	0.5×
253	Guildford	South East	0.3	10	20	9	3,800	21	0.5×
254	Tunbridge Wells	South East	0.3	10	20	9	3,700	51	0.2×
255	Bracknell Forest	South East	0.3	10	20	9	3,700	17	0.6×
256	Malvern Hills	West Midlands	0.3	10	20	9	3,600	24	0.4×
257	Canterbury	South East	0.3	10	19	9	3,600	123	0.1×
258	Fylde	North West	0.3	9	18	8	3,200	37	0.2×
259	Stevenage	East of England	0.3	9	18	8	3,300	9	1.0×
260	Melton	East Midlands	0.3	9	18	8	3,300	37	0.2×
261	Watford	East of England	0.3	9	18	8	3,300	6	1.5×
262	Cheltenham	South West	0.3	9	18	8	3,200	14	0.6×
263	Dover	South East	0.3	9	18	8	3,300	40	0.2×
264	Wandsworth	London	0.3	9	17	7	2,800	10	0.9×
265	St Albans	East of England	0.3	9	17	8	3,200	19	0.5×
266	Derbyshire Dales	East Midlands	0.3	8	17	8	3,100	79	0.1×
267	Rushmoor	South East	0.3	8	17	8	3,200	10	0.8×
268	Hertsmere	East of England	0.3	8	17	8	3,100	20	0.4×
269	Adur	South East	0.3	8	17	8	3,100	8	1.1×
270	Ribble Valley	North West	0.3	8	16	7	2,800	19	0.4×
271	Torridge	South West	0.3	8	16	7	2,900	167	0.0×
272	Hastings	South East	0.3	8	16	7	2,900	8	1.0×
273	Merthyr Tydfil / Merthyr Tudful	Wales	0.3	8	16	7	2,800	7	1.1×
274	Surrey Heath	South East	0.3	8	16	7	2,900	11	0.7×
275	Kingston upon Thames	London	0.2	8	16	6	2,500	9	0.8×
276	Folkestone and Hythe	South East	0.2	8	15	7	2,800	38	0.2×
277	Brighton and Hove	South East	0.2	7	15	7	2,800	26	0.3×
278	Reigate and Banstead	South East	0.2	7	15	7	2,800	18	0.4×
279	Torbay	South West	0.2	7	15	7	2,700	15	0.5×
280	Conwy / Conwy	Wales	0.2	7	15	7	2,600	49	0.1×
281	Redbridge	London	0.2	7	15	6	2,400	11	0.7×
282	Elmbridge	South East	0.2	7	15	7	2,700	22	0.3×
283	Windsor and Maidenhead	South East	0.2	7	14	7	2,700	20	0.4×
284	Gosport	South East	0.2	7	14	6	2,600	9	0.7×
285	Brentwood	East of England	0.2	7	14	6	2,500	57	0.1×
286	Worthing	South East	0.2	7	13	6	2,500	11	0.6×
287	Rother	South East	0.2	7	13	6	2,500	21	0.3×
288	Waverley	South East	0.2	6	13	6	2,400	23	0.3×
289	Lambeth	London	0.2	6	13	5	2,000	10	0.6×
290	Hackney	London	0.2	6	13	5	2,000	10	0.6×
291	Lewisham	London	0.2	6	13	5	2,000	11	0.6×
292	Gravesham	South East	0.2	6	13	6	2,300	12	0.5×
293	Spelthorne	South East	0.2	6	13	6	2,300	10	0.6×
294	Castle Point	East of England	0.2	6	12	6	2,300	7	0.9×
295	Runnymede	South East	0.2	6	12	6	2,300	11	0.5×
296	Woking	South East	0.2	6	12	6	2,300	14	0.4×
297	Rutland	East Midlands	0.2	6	12	5	2,200	26	0.2×
298	Eastbourne	South East	0.2	6	12	6	2,200	11	0.6×
299	Ceredigion / Ceredigion	Wales	0.2	6	11	5	2,000	54	0.1×
300	Barnet	London	0.2	6	11	4	1,800	16	0.4×
301	Isle of Anglesey / Ynys Môn	Wales	0.2	6	11	5	2,000	108	0.1×
302	West Devon	South West	0.2	5	10	5	1,900	40	0.1×
303	Harrow	London	0.2	5	10	4	1,600	12	0.4×
304	Mole Valley	South East	0.2	5	10	5	1,800	14	0.4×
305	Cambridge	East of England	0.2	5	10	4	1,800	22	0.2×
306	Islington	London	0.1	4	9	4	1,400	7	0.6×
307	Hart	South East	0.1	4	9	4	1,700	75	0.1×
308	Tandridge	South East	0.1	4	9	4	1,700	12	0.4×
309	Oxford	South East	0.1	4	8	4	1,500	17	0.2×
310	Three Rivers	East of England	0.1	4	8	4	1,500	8	0.5×
311	Hammersmith and Fulham	London	0.1	4	8	3	1,300	4	0.9×
312	Camden	London	0.1	4	8	3	1,200	7	0.5×
313	Richmond upon Thames	London	0.1	2	5	2	700	10	0.2×
314	Epsom and Ewell	South East	0.1	2	4	2	700	6	0.3×
315	Kensington and Chelsea	London	0.0	1	3	1	500	2	0.6×
316	Westminster	London	0.0	1	1	0	200	7	0.1×
317	City of London	London	0.0	0	0	0	100	1	0.1×
318	Isles of Scilly	South West	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0.3×

* GBE estimate. Floorspace: factory and warehouse floorspace, VOA, 31 March 2026. Installed solar: DESNZ, end of 2025, all solar in the area (homes, farms, solar parks and business roofs). “Potential vs installed” is the 25% scenario divided by solar installed. Homes’ worth uses 2,500 kWh a year, rounded to the nearest 100. The floorspace by building type for every council is in the CSV.

Where the gap is widest: rooftop potential vs solar installed

Councils with at least 2 km² of factory and warehouse floorspace, ranked by how many times a quarter of their roofs could exceed all the solar already installed in the area. These are the places where rooftop potential most outstrips all the solar built so far.

#	Local authority	Region / nation	Floorspace (km²)	Potential at 25% (MWp)*	Installed (MW)	Gap*
1	Sandwell	West Midlands	3.8	120	22	5.5×
2	Rochdale	North West	2.5	79	24	3.2×
3	Bradford	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.8	118	37	3.2×
4	Dudley	West Midlands	2.1	66	22	3.0×
5	Birmingham	West Midlands	5.9	185	65	2.9×
6	Kirklees	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.5	111	41	2.7×
7	Wakefield	Yorkshire and The Humber	4.2	131	50	2.6×
8	Coventry	West Midlands	2.1	66	26	2.6×
9	Rotherham	Yorkshire and The Humber	2.5	80	35	2.3×
10	Bolton	North West	2.1	64	30	2.1×
11	Wigan	North West	2.1	65	32	2.0×
12	Sheffield	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.1	98	49	2.0×
13	Leeds	Yorkshire and The Humber	4.9	153	77	2.0×
14	Stoke-on-Trent	West Midlands	2.4	75	39	2.0×
15	Leicester	East Midlands	2.0	62	33	1.9×
16	Kingston upon Hull	Yorkshire and The Humber	2.2	70	37	1.9×
17	Doncaster	Yorkshire and The Humber	3.0	93	67	1.4×
18	Bristol	South West	2.2	69	55	1.3×
19	North West Leicestershire	East Midlands	2.9	92	73	1.3×
20	Peterborough	East of England	2.2	68	55	1.2×

Urban areas have little room for solar farms, so their installed total is low and the gap looks wide. That is the point: in towns and cities, roofs are where new solar can go. For car parks, see solar carports.

The biggest sheds

Big logistics and industrial buildings carry the largest single roofs. The VOA counts about 880 “large industrials” of over 20,000 m² in England and Wales, with 32.1 km² of floorspace between them, plus about 2,640 distribution warehouses with 53.5 km². At our cautious density, panels on a quarter of a 20,000 m² roof would hold about 625 kWp, and about 1.1 MWp on one of average size (36,500 m²). See warehouse solar panels for costs and payback on roofs this size.

Counts are published by the VOA rounded to the nearest 10. Council-level figures for these two types are often suppressed, so we don’t rank them.

Commercial rooftop solar potential by region

Factory and warehouse floorspace by English region and Wales (km²).

North West

West Midlands

East Midlands

Yorkshire & Humber

South East

East of England

South West

Wales

London

North East

Region / nation	Floorspace (km²)	Potential at 25% (MWp)*	At 50% (MWp)*	Generation at 25% (GWh/yr)*	Installed (MW, 2025)	Solar load factor
North West	46.7	1,458	2,916	1,248	989	9.8%
West Midlands	44.9	1,404	2,808	1,270	1,678	10.3%
East Midlands	42.1	1,314	2,628	1,195	2,565	10.4%
Yorkshire and The Humber	40.9	1,279	2,559	1,124	1,220	10.0%
South East	34.4	1,075	2,150	1,001	3,666	10.6%
East of England	33.8	1,056	2,112	983	3,455	10.6%
South West	26.4	826	1,652	743	4,375	10.3%
Wales	16.4	511	1,022	453	1,697	10.1%
London	15.8	493	986	395	387	9.1%
North East	15.5	485	971	425	472	10.0%
England and Wales	316.9	9,903	19,805	8,836	20,505	–

Load factor: DESNZ standard solar PV load factor for the region, averaged over 2021–2025 to smooth out sunny and dull years. Installed solar is the sum of council figures, so it excludes a small number of installations DESNZ could not assign to an area.

What this means for businesses

A roof that already exists needs no new land. Solar on it cuts the power a business buys from the grid in daylight hours, which suits sites that run in the working day. The usual hurdles are roof strength, the cost of the system and the local grid connection.

Cost and payback. See our commercial solar panel cost guide for typical prices and payback by system size.
No upfront cost. Under a commercial solar PPA, a funder usually pays for and owns the panels, and you buy the power at an agreed rate. PPAs tend to suit larger roofs.
Tax relief. Companies can claim capital allowances on solar panels, which can cut the net cost.
Grants and loans. Our commercial solar panel grants page lists what is open now; the business energy grants hub covers the rest.
Grid connection. Larger systems usually need a G99 application to the network operator. Adding commercial battery storage can help a site use more of its own power.
Smaller premises. Not every roof is a big shed. See solar panels for small business and retail solar panels for shops and retail parks; England and Wales also have 27 km² of superstores and retail warehouses (in the CSV).
Energy-heavy industry. Manufacturers with high power bills should also look at the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme.
Farms and public buildings. This study counts business premises only. For farm land see agrivoltaics; for schools, hospitals and council buildings see the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme.

In Wales? Welsh businesses have their own loans and support for solar. See business energy grants in Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland are not covered by this data (the VOA covers England and Wales only); see business energy support in Scotland and business energy support in Northern Ireland.

WarehousesWarehouse solar panelsCosts, grants and a free installer quote FactoriesSolar panels for factoriesSizing, payback and a free quote Any businessCommercial solar panelsHow it works and what it costs FundingCommercial solar grantsWhat’s open to businesses in 2026

Methodology and limitations

The data

Roof space proxy. VOA, Non-domestic rating: business floorspace, March 2026 (Official Statistics, published 15 October 2026), using the local-authority file by Special Category (SCat) code. Floorspace is at 31 March 2026 on the 2023 rating list. We add up four SCat codes: “Factories, workshops and warehouses (inc bakeries & dairies)” (229 million m²), “Large industrials (over 20,000 m²)” (32.1m), “Distribution warehouses” (53.5m) and “Wholesale warehouses” (1.9m). We leave out “Land used for storage” and other open yards, which have no roof. For reference, the VOA’s whole Industry sector is 417.5 million m².
Solar already installed. DESNZ, Regional renewable statistics (Energy Trends, published 29 September 2026): solar PV capacity in MW by local authority at the end of 2025. This counts every kind of solar: home roofs, business roofs, farms and ground-mounted solar parks.
Sunshine. DESNZ standard solar PV load factors by region, mean of 2021–2025 (between 9.1% and 10.6%).

The formula (GBE estimate)

Capacity (MWp) = floorspace (m²) × share of roof covered ÷ 8,000 m² per MWp.
Generation (GWh a year) = MWp × regional load factor × 8,760 hours ÷ 1,000.
Homes equivalent = generation ÷ 2,500 kWh, Ofgem’s typical medium household electricity use from 1 July 2026 (Ofgem TDCV decision, 27 May 2026).
Panel density. BRE National Solar Centre (2016) gives a rule of thumb of “around 6000-8000m² of sloping roof space … per megawatt”, and says flat roofs hold less because rows need spacing. We use 8,000 m² per MWp (125 W per m²). Panels have become more powerful since 2016; the government’s Solar Roadmap (June 2025) says the UK’s largest 20% of warehouses alone offer 75 million m² of roof that could support around 15 GW, about 200 W per m². So our figure is cautious for pitched roofs and allows for row spacing on flat ones.
Share of roof covered: a scenario, not a forecast. Not every roof can take panels: some are too weak, shaded, listed, leased on short terms or covered in plant. No official figure exists for the usable share of UK factory and warehouse roofs, so we show two clearly labelled scenarios: 25% and 50%. BRE’s own national estimate assumed 50% of south-facing commercial roof space; we lead with the more cautious 25%.

Limitations

Floorspace is not roof area. VOA floorspace is the internal area used for rating. Mezzanines and upper floors can add floorspace without adding roof, which would overstate roof area; external walls and overhangs are left out, which understates it. Factories and warehouses are mostly single-storey, so floorspace is a reasonable proxy, but it is a proxy.
Some roofs already have panels. Installed solar counts all solar in an area, not just business roofs, so the “gap” compares rooftop potential with everything already built. It is not a count of empty roofs.
Suppressed cells. The VOA hides small figures (“[c]”) to protect confidentiality. We count these as zero, so council totals add up to 300.4 million m², against 316.9 million m² in the England and Wales total. Affected councils are flagged in the CSV.
Coverage. England and Wales only. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate rating systems and are not in the VOA data. Only properties on the local rating list are included.
Boundaries. We use the 318 councils current in both datasets. DESNZ notes that some 2025 installations could not yet be assigned to an area and will be revised.
Not a quote. Whether one roof suits solar depends on its structure, shading, orientation, lease and grid connection. A survey is the only way to know.

Sources

All sources checked on 1 November 2026. VOA and DESNZ data are Crown copyright under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

How to cite or embed. Journalists, councils and researchers may use these findings, tables and the dataset with credit to Great British Energy (greatbritishenergy.com), an independent guide not connected to Great British Energy, the publicly owned company (gbe.gov.uk), and a link to this page: https://greatbritishenergy.com/research/commercial-rooftop-solar-potential/. Please describe derived figures as “GBE estimates”. For a local story, find your council in the table or the CSV. Press enquiries: see our About page. Sister study: the ECO4 postcode lottery.

Download the full dataset

All 318 councils plus regions and national totals: floorspace by building type, solar potential at 25% and 50%, generation, homes equivalent and solar installed, as a clean CSV.

Download CSV

Commercial Rooftop Solar Potential: The Areas With the Most Untapped Factory and Warehouse Roofs

The headline numbers

Key findings

Commercial rooftop solar potential by local authority

Where the gap is widest: rooftop potential vs solar installed

The biggest sheds

Commercial rooftop solar potential by region

What this means for businesses

Methodology and limitations

The data

The formula (GBE estimate)

Limitations

Sources

Download the full dataset

Is your roof worth covering?

Commercial Rooftop Solar Potential: The Areas With the Most Untapped Factory and Warehouse Roofs

The headline numbers

Key findings

Commercial rooftop solar potential by local authority

Where the gap is widest: rooftop potential vs solar installed

The biggest sheds

Commercial rooftop solar potential by region

What this means for businesses

Methodology and limitations

The data

The formula (GBE estimate)

Limitations

Sources

Download the full dataset

Is your roof worth covering?

Related business solar guides

Warehouse Solar Panels

Solar Panels for Factories

Commercial Solar Grants

Business Energy Grants