South Yorkshire’s business community is urging the UK Government to steer solar investment towards commercial rooftops and brownfield sites as concerns intensify over the viability of large farmland-based projects.
The call follows recent decisions by Doncaster and Rotherham councils, which identified significant planning, environmental, and operational risks linked to a proposed 750-megawatt solar scheme near Conisbrough and Rotherham. The project sits within the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects process, so the final determination rests with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.
Regional chambers say the current landscape highlights a wider opportunity for industry-led generation across existing commercial assets. South Yorkshire has a deep concentration of industrial, manufacturing, and logistics estates with substantial unused rooftop capacity. Many businesses are already investing in onsite generation to reduce exposure to volatile energy markets and strengthen long-term operational resilience.
This momentum mirrors a broader shift in national logistics and warehousing. “A number of our warehouses now have solar panels on their roofs -and this is just the start,” said Luke Fermor, Head of Global Fulfilment at Woodland Group. “With millions of square feet of warehouse rooftops sitting unused across the UK, it makes no sense to sacrifice productive farmland for solar when industrial buildings can do the job. Our ambition is for all the energy we consume to be renewable, with the majority generated on site. Once panels go up, they deliver low-cost renewable energy for many years. If policymakers prioritise rooftops and more logistics hubs commit, this shift could be transformational — environmentally and financially.”
Local chambers point to recent corporate installations in the region as evidence that rooftop systems can offset a meaningful share of demand without taking productive land out of use. They argue that this model offers a more straightforward route for scaling renewable generation while supporting industrial growth.
The joint letter sent to the government outlines three areas for immediate action: stronger planning guidance that favours rooftop and brownfield proposals, enhanced incentives to accelerate commercial solar deployment, and closer engagement with business groups to develop a pipeline of projects that protect rural assets and maintain investor confidence.
