commercialsolarfinance.co.uk
Compare lease, asset finance and cash routes alongside PPA on the commercial solar finance hub.
Warehouses
1.2MWp PPA for a Midlands 3PL Warehouse
A 1,200 kWp solar PPA at 11.5 p/kWh over 20 years delivers a year-1 saving of £164,000 for this warehouses client.
Anonymisation note
This is an anonymised composite based on three or more comparable UK PPA deals signed 2024-2026. Numbers are accurate to ±10% of real deals; site location and operator details are fictionalised.
| Deal summary | |
|---|---|
| Sector | Warehouses |
| System size | 1,200 kWp |
| PPA tariff (year 1) | 11.5 p/kWh |
| Contract term | 20 years |
| Year-1 saving | £164,000 |
An illustrative Midlands distribution scenario
Take a third-party logistics operator running a 22,000 m² ambient warehouse close to the M1/M6 interchange — an anonymised, representative case rather than a named client. The building drew roughly 4.6 GWh a year on a 26 p/kWh contract, and its largest customer, a Tier-1 retailer, had set an end-2025 deadline for Scope 3 emissions disclosure. Cash for a seven-figure rooftop array was not available. That combination — a heavy, predictable daytime load, a hard sustainability deadline, and no capital — is exactly where a power purchase agreement earns its keep.
Structuring the 1.2 MWp deal
A specialist solar fund financed and owned a 1.2 MWp rooftop system, selling the electricity back at 11.5 p/kWh in year one under a 20-year term. The escalator was tied to RPI but capped at 2%, so the operator kept visibility over its future unit rate. Full operations and maintenance — inverter replacement included — sat with the provider, and the EPC contractor was pre-vetted before signing. Because the fund owns the asset, the capital allowances stay with the funder, not the off-taker; you can see how that ownership split shapes the numbers on the tariff and pricing page.
Why the covenant mattered
The retained retail contract — indicatively worth around £18m a year — was the reason the site could support a deal of this size. Providers price against the strength of the buyer, so a warehouse anchored by a blue-chip customer attracts a keener tariff than one on a rolling short lease. If your own site is weighing this up, the off-taker covenant guide explains what funders look for.
The indicative result — and the snags
First-year savings landed near £164,000, roughly a 3.6% margin improvement, and the REGO transfer underpinned a market-based Scope 2 renewable claim. Two practical points slowed delivery, and they are worth flagging:
- A survey found panel-bolt corrosion on the roof needing patch repair before install — about four weeks lost.
- The G99 grid connection took eleven weeks, longer than first quoted.
Neither derailed the project, but both are typical of large rooftop schemes; the full sequence is set out in how a PPA works.
Related to this PPA case study
Could a similar deal work at your site?
A 60-second form gives us enough to match your site to providers and return an indicative tariff comparable to this case study.
Get an indicative PPA tariff
Across the SEO Dons network
Finance routes
Grants & tax relief
Installer directory
More from the UK commercial solar advisory
solarpanelgrantsforbusinesses.co.uk
If you'd rather own the system, check live UK grant and tax-relief options on the grants directory.
commercialsolarpanelsinstallation.co.uk
Vetted MCS-accredited installer partners on the commercial solar installation hub.
Ask us what a PPA would cost at your site
1.2MWp PPA for a Midlands 3PL Warehouse — tell us about your site and we'll return an indicative p/kWh tariff for it. Reply by email within one working day.