Port of Liverpool plans UK’s largest roof-mounted solar project

Image: Peel Ports Group

Operator Peel Ports has today (18 March) announced plans to work with E.ON to install up to 63,000 solar panels across the Port’s rooftops, including on the roof of the new Alexandra Dock Warehouse.

More than 6,000 of these panels have already been delivered and it is hoped that the entire array will be completed by the summer of 2026.

The solar array is expected to be the largest of its kind in the UK and meet up to a quarter of the Port’s annual electricity needs, with a capacity of up to 31MW. The exact number of panels and their capacity will be confirmed in the final designs.

Peel Ports is foreseeing reductions in the Port of Liverpool’s annual Scope 2 (power-related) emissions of some 6,500 tonnes due to the shift to more solar.

E.ON foresees the solar panels being in place for 25 years and will be responsible for overseeing the upkeep for the project.

Further to the solar expansion, Peel Ports and E.ON will collaborate to upgrade the Port of Liverpool’s wind turbines. Five existing turbines will be replaced with four new, larger turbines, expanding the project’s capacity to around 20MW. Work to transition the turbines is expected to begin in late 2027 or early 2028, subject to the planning process and consultations.

Peel Ports Group’s chief executive Claudio Veritiero said the partnership will “revolutionise the energy system” at the Port.

E.ON UK’s chief executive Chris Norbury agreed, adding: “The Port of Liverpool is a critical piece of infrastructure for the UK and decarbonising sites like this will be vital for the UK to achieve its environmental goals. Simply put, we all need to move faster on reducing emissions and this huge project will be a massive step in the right direction.

“We’ve been the energy supplier for Peel Ports Group for more than 20 years and I’m proud they’re putting their trust in us and our relationship so far to create what will be a clean energy system fit for decades to come.”

The UK Government is aiming for the nation to host 70GW of solar capacity by 2035 – a target that was recommended in a Government-commissioned review into how the nation can maximise the economic benefits of its transition to net-zero by 2050.

It has set up a Solar Taskforce of industry and policy experts to map a pathway to this goal. A key Taskforce focus at present is assessing how rooftop solar on commercial sites such as factories, warehouses and car parks can be scaled significantly.

Related feature: How UK businesses can use solar to forge a path to energy resilience