Just five years ago, the prospect of a solar farm in Scotland was unthinkable. The technology, which had been in mainstream use in southern European locations for almost a decade, was just starting to kick off in Cornwall and other relatively sunny climes in the South of England, but no one was seriously thinking about bringing solar north of Birmingham.

Flash forward to June 2016 and the new Minister for Energy in Scotland, Paul Wheelhouse MSP, performed the official opening of a 13MW, 72-acre solar farm in Perthshire. The largest solar farm to date in Scotland, it now produces enough energy to power over 3,500 houses every year.

So how did we get here, what lessons have been learned along the way, and is there potential for more solar in Scotland?

One cold and rainy October day I took a call from Elgin Energy, a renewables development company based in southern Ireland. Elgin Energy was convinced that with its high irradiance levels in coastal areas, large open spaces with a relative scarcity of neighbours, and a strong appetite from Scottish Government to meet ambitious renewable energy targets, Scotland was an ideal environment in which to develop solar. Accordingly, the company was looking for large, flat or south-facing land that had low visibility from public viewpoints and was close to substations. Looking out of the window of my office in Perth, I had my doubts. But Elgin Energy's enthusiasm was infectious, and I said I would keep my eyes and ears open.

Just a few weeks later, I was visiting Errol Estate in Perthshire. A long-standing rural client with a strong track record on all types of diversification, from holiday lets to a corporate hospitality business, Errol is an entrepreneurial client which embraces new opportunities. We were originally meeting to discuss the viability of a wind project, but this was soon discredited due to bird populations along the estuary. However, when walking around the estate I spotted a large substation and adjacent flat land: exactly what Elgin Energy was looking for so I introduced the company to our clients.

In the intervening years, Elgin Energy worked tirelessly to secure planning with Perth & Kinross Council, grid connection potential with SSE and landowner agreements for the lease of the land. Savills worked closely with Elgin Energy to find a site that worked for everyone and the final selection struck a balance between planning requirements, distance to the sub station, land quality and tenancy agreements.

By December 2016 Elgin Energy had taken the project to 'shovel ready' stage and sold the site to Canadian Solar, who pushed the project build through in less than three months, from the first spade in the ground to power being generated. At the peak of the build there were 100 people on site, some of them waste deep in mud thanks to one of the wettest, winters on record.

When planning the opening event in three inches of snow earlier this year, it was hard to envisage the lush green solar farm in existence today. In fact, the opening day itself was rather fittingly one of the hottest in Scotland this year. However, as John Forster of the Solar Trade Association said in his speech, the heat of the sun is less important to a successful solar project as it is solar irradiance that powers the panels.

There are now sheep grazing among the 55,000 solar panels, and a hare or two can be spotted darting between them. And true to Elgin Energy's vision, it is almost impossible to see them until you're standing before them, taking in the vast expanse of low-level panels glistening in the fields.

We are all operating in a more challenging market, with little or no subsidy support for solar farms, but with solar panel prices reducing by about 50 per cent in the last three years the financials make sense. In fact, Savills is progressing multiple solar projects in Scotland which will be developed on a subsidy-free basis over the coming years. The common denominators are that the land extends to 100 acres or more, and is located within 5km of a substation to allow connection capacity.

Further information

Contact Savills Energy