Last reviewed: 3 November 2026, against the government pages listed under Sources at the end of this page.
Solar grants for farmers: as of 3 November 2026, no grant for solar panels on farms is open in any UK nation; Northern Ireland's 20% NISEP grant for business solar has closed for its 2026/27 round. England's Improving Farm Productivity (IFP) grant — up to 25% of the cost, from £15,000 to £100,000, for solar on farm-building roofs or irrigation reservoirs, never ground-mounted arrays — has closed, and no further round has been announced. The current farm capital schemes in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland do not list solar panels. What still works: the £1 million Annual Investment Allowance and the other capital allowances, business-rates rules for on-site generation, and export payments. The Welsh 3% farm loan for renewable generation is at the register-your-interest stage.
How realistic is a grant for farm solar?
Plainly: not very, in 2026. In England, Scotland and Wales no farm capital scheme lists solar panels today — England's Improving Farm Productivity round 2 closed on 31 July 2025 with no new round announced, Scotland's Future Farming Investment Scheme excluded PV in 2025 and has not published its 2026 list, and the Welsh Sustainable Farming Scheme has no renewables capital items. In Northern Ireland the NISEP grant for business solar pays 20% when it runs — the farm pays 80%, the solar grant is capped at £30,000, funds are limited with waiting lists when a scheme is oversubscribed, and a property that had a grant for the same measure in the last 15 years is excluded (NISEP list of schemes 2026-27, pp.2 and 33) — but Power NI says its 2026/27 round has closed for applications. So a farm array installed this winter is paid for from cash, finance or a power purchase agreement, with capital allowances doing most of the tax work.
Most pages about farm solar grants still describe schemes that have closed, and some describe schemes that never existed. This page gives the status of every public scheme a farmer might be told about, nation by nation, with the date we checked it and a link to the source. The short version is unwelcome but useful: on 3 November 2026 the money for farm solar comes from tax relief, loans and your own electricity bill, not from grants. If a round reopens, the rules of the last one — below — are the best guide to being ready.
Government grants for solar farms — the four-nation summary
Whether you search for government grants for solar farms, solar power grants for farms, solar panel grants for farmers or solar farm government funding, these are the schemes that come up, and this is where each stood on 3 November 2026.
| Nation | Scheme | Status (3 Nov 2026) | What it offers | Solar panels eligible? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | Improving Farm Productivity (IFP) grant, round 2 | Closed | Up to 25% of eligible costs; for solar, £15,000 to £100,000 per business | Yes — roof or irrigation reservoir only; not ground-mounted |
| England | Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF) 2026 | Closed at midday, 12 May 2026 | £1,000 to £25,000 per grant theme against an item list | No — only solar-powered kit such as a livestock water pump |
| England | Capital Grants 2026 | Closed 1 September 2026 (budget allocated) | Fixed payments for listed capital items | No solar items |
| England | Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI26) | Closed; next opportunity in 2027 | Payments for land-management actions | No solar action |
| Scotland | Future Farming Investment Scheme | 2025 round closed; 2026 round opens from winter 2026 | Grants of up to £20,000 from a £14.25m budget; base rate not yet published | 2025 round: solar panels and batteries not eligible; 2026 list not yet published |
| Scotland | Business Energy Scotland SME Loan | Open, but not for solar | Interest-free loans up to £100,000 for other measures | Not accepting new solar PV applications |
| Wales | Capital Production and Efficiency | Open from 28 July 2026; last date for 2026/27 selection 11 December 2026 | Up to 40% of eligible costs, £500 to £15,000 per business per year | No solar PV item (precision soil, manure, crop and livestock equipment) |
| Wales | Ynni Cymru capital grant, round 3 | Closed at 12pm on 21 May 2026; no further round announced | SMEs: 25% match funding; PV only for the share of payback beyond 10 years, capped at 40% | PV-plus-battery-only projects ineligible |
| Wales | Green Business Loan Scheme (Development Bank of Wales) | Open (loan, not a grant) | £1,000 to £1.5 million over up to 15 years (Senedd WQ96151) | Yes — solar PV is a named measure |
| Wales | Sustainable Agriculture Loan Scheme (Development Bank of Wales) | Launched 1 July 2026; taking registrations of interest, not yet applications | Loans of £25,000 to £1 million at a fixed 3%, up to 15 years | Yes — renewable energy generation for on-farm use, once applications open |
| Northern Ireland | NISEP Commercial Energy Saving Scheme (Power NI) | Closed for applications for 2026/27 (Power NI, read 3 November 2026); next round expected April 2027, subject to funding approval | When open: 20% grant; applicant pays 80%; solar PV grant capped at £30,000 | Yes, for commercial and non-domestic property in NI — but not open now |
| Northern Ireland | Energy Efficiency Capital Grant (Invest NI) | Paused; no reopening date | Historic: 30–50% up to £150,000 | Farms were excluded when it was open |
| Northern Ireland | Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme (DAERA) | Round 1 closed 3 September 2026; more rounds planned | 40% of costs, up to £25,000 | Not on the round 1 item list |
| Northern Ireland | Farm Business Improvement Scheme – Capital (DAERA) | Closed since 2022 | Capital grants | No — renewable energy projects excluded |
Sources: gov.uk, gov.scot, ruralpayments.org, businessenergyscotland.org, gov.wales, developmentbank.wales, daera-ni.gov.uk, investni.com, uregni.gov.uk and powerni.co.uk — full list at the end of this page.
Which funding routes apply to your farm? Check in two minutes
No farm capital grant lists solar panels in England, Scotland or Wales, and Northern Ireland's 20% NISEP grant for business solar has closed for its 2026/27 round, but tax relief, export payments and some loans still apply. Answer seven questions (an eighth, on how you would fund it, is optional) and the routes that fit your farm appear below. Add your details if you want them talked through: we reply by email, no obligation.
How your enquiry is handled
SolarPanelsForFarms.uk is an independent guide published by SEO Dons Ltd, not an installer. We reply by email. We never sell or auction your details, and we do not pass them on without your say-so. The routes above are a summary of the schemes on this page, not tax advice: check the current rules with your accountant and the scheme's own guidance before you commit.
If a grant doesn't fit: how farms actually pay for solar
Most farm arrays in 2026 are funded without a grant. These are the routes, with one fact each; we describe how they work and do not arrange credit or contracts.
- Hire purchase, leasing or asset finance. Solar PV is special-rate plant (section 104A of the Capital Allowances Act 2001), so under hire purchase the farm normally claims the £1m Annual Investment Allowance, or a company the 50% first-year allowance, then 6% a year — not full expensing; under a lease the lessor usually claims instead. Our farm solar finance options page sets out how hire purchase, leases and PPAs compare for a farm.
- Loans. In Wales the Development Bank of Wales Green Business Loan names solar PV, at £1,000 to £1.5 million over up to 15 years (Senedd WQ96151), and the 3% farm loan is at the register-interest stage. In Scotland the Business Energy Scotland SME Loan is not taking solar PV applications.
- A power purchase agreement. An investor owns and maintains the array and the farm pays for the electricity it uses, with no upfront cost; because the farm does not own the kit, it claims no capital allowances. Our agricultural PPA guide covers the contract.
- Own funds. Buying outright usually gives the lowest lifetime cost per kWh; the payback arithmetic is in our farm solar cost guide, and the tax side in capital allowances on solar panels.
England — Improving Farm Productivity (IFP) grant
The Improving Farm Productivity grant is the only English scheme that has paid for solar panels to power farms. Its rules are worth knowing because they are the template any future round is likely to follow:
- Rate and size: up to 25% of the cost of eligible items. For solar, the minimum grant was £15,000 — 25% of a £60,000 project — and the maximum £100,000 per applicant business.
- Where the panels could go: on farm-building rooftops or irrigation reservoirs only. A ground-based solar array was excluded, and the system had to be mainly for farm power and not on a residential property.
- Eligible items: solar PV panels, solar batteries, inverters, utility meters, electrical grid connections and power diverters.
- Who could apply: farm businesses, including tenants — who were responsible for getting any permissions they needed from their landlord. Contractors were not eligible for solar funding.
- Timing: nothing could be started or bought before the project start date in the grant funding agreement.
Status: round 2's online checker ran from 25 January to 21 March 2024 and full applications closed on 31 July 2025. The applicant guidance (updated 2 March 2026) says round 2 is closed, and gov.uk's Funding for farmers page (updated 22 September 2026) lists no further round.
England — the other schemes farmers ask about
Farming Equipment and Technology Fund (FETF). The 2026 window closed at midday on 12 May 2026, and Defra described it as the final standalone round of FETF in its current form. FETF paid fixed amounts against an item list — £1,000 to £25,000 per grant theme — and its 2023–2026 item lists did not include solar panels to power a farm; solar appeared only as part of items such as a solar-powered water pump.
Capital Grants 2026 opened on 30 July and closed on 1 September 2026 once its budget was allocated; solar was not on its item list. The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI26) closed after its second window on 22 September 2026, with another opportunity promised for 2027, and has no solar action. Farming in Protected Landscapes, which runs until March 2029 in National Parks and National Landscapes, states in its guidance for applicants that solar parks or arrays are not eligible.
Can you get a grant for ground-mounted solar on a farm?
No. The Improving Farm Productivity grant excluded ground-based arrays, and no current UK farm scheme funds them. Field-scale solar is a commercial generation project: a developer typically leases the land, or the farm sells power through a power purchase agreement, and large schemes compete in the government's Contracts for Difference auctions.
If you are weighing up leasing land for solar, three payment rules matter. Delinked payments in England do not need land and are not affected if you change what the land is used for — and 2027 is their last year. Land under a solar array has its own Rural Payments Agency land-use code (UT01), which the RPA lists as a non-agricultural use. And Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier excludes parcels with solar panels generating electricity for use off the farm. See the 1-acre solar farm guide for the economics, and ground-mounted solar for farms for the practical side.
Scotland — solar is excluded from the current farm schemes
The Future Farming Investment Scheme is Scotland's main farm capital scheme. Its 2025 round (open 14 July to 22 August 2025) offered up to £20,000 per business, and its eligible-items list put solar panels, renewable energy investments and battery storage in the not-eligible column; only solar-powered equipment such as a submersible water pump qualified. The Scottish Government has announced the next round, opening from winter 2026, with grants of up to £20,000 (enhanced rates for new entrants, Highlands and Islands businesses and projects with environmental benefits) from a £14.25 million budget — with the item list still to be published.
The other names you will hear are closed to farm solar. The Sustainable Agriculture Capital Grant Scheme has closed and never covered panels. CARES funding from Local Energy Scotland is for non-profit community groups. The Business Energy Scotland SME Loan offers interest-free loans of up to £100,000 over eight years for other measures but is not accepting new solar PV applications. What does apply in Scotland: capital allowances, the Smart Export Guarantee, and a rating rule (SSI 2023/32) that takes on-site renewable generation plant out of business-rates valuations until 31 March 2035, and a separately rated array (one built mainly to export, say) can claim Renewable Energy Generation Relief — 100% up to a rateable value of £145,000 in 2026-27. On the grid, a Transmission Impact Assessment is needed above 200 kW on mainland Scotland and above 50 kW on the islands; the 5 MW threshold used in England and Wales does not apply. More on solar for farmers in Scotland.
Wales — no grant; a 3% loan at the register-interest stage
Wales's farm capital grants do not fund solar panels. Small Grants – Efficiency (last window January to February 2026; up to £15,000 at 40%) listed only a solar-powered fencing energiser and a solar-powered livestock water pump. Its successor, Capital Production and Efficiency (open from 28 July 2026, last date for 2026/27 selection 11 December 2026; up to 40% of costs, £500 to £15,000 per business a year), funds precision soil, manure, crop and livestock equipment and has no solar PV item. Ynni Cymru round 3, which could part-fund SME solar under strict payback rules, closed on 21 May 2026. The older Farm Business Grant and Sustainable Production Grant closed with the 2014–2020 Rural Development Programme, and the Sustainable Farming Scheme that began on 1 January 2026 has no solar or renewable-energy capital option.
The farm loan is not yet lending. The Sustainable Agriculture Loan Scheme, run by the Development Bank of Wales, launched on 1 July 2026 for loans of £25,000 to £1 million at a fixed 3% over up to 15 years, and its eligible uses include renewable energy generation for on-farm use — but as of 3 November 2026 its page asks farmers to register their interest and says the bank will be in touch once further information is available. The bank's Green Business Loan Scheme (£1,000 to £1.5 million), which names solar PV, is taking applications. See the Wales farm solar guide.
Northern Ireland — no DAERA grant, and the NISEP round is closed
Every Northern Ireland scheme, how the NISEP rules work, the tax relief that does apply and the export position are set out on our grants for solar panels in Northern Ireland page.
The NISEP Commercial Energy Saving Scheme, run by Power NI for the Utility Regulator, is the one scheme that has paid towards business solar PV in Northern Ireland: a 20% grant (the applicant pays 80%) with the solar grant capped at £30,000. Power NI's page, read on 3 November 2026, says the 2026/27 scheme has closed for applications and that, subject to funding approval, the next is expected to open in April 2027. Invest NI's Energy Efficiency Capital Grant is paused.
DAERA's Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme — 40% of eligible costs up to £25,000 — ran its first round from 21 July to 3 September 2026, with more rounds planned over the next three to four years; its item list covered crop, livestock, resource and slurry equipment, with solar only as part of items such as water pumps and fencers. The earlier Farm Business Improvement Scheme – Capital closed in 2022 and explicitly excluded renewable energy projects. The Smart Export Guarantee does not apply in Northern Ireland and the NI Renewables Obligation closed to new generation on 31 March 2017, but export is paid at supplier-set rates: Power NI's microgeneration export tariff is 11.88p per kWh from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027, reviewed each year. A proposed renewable electricity support scheme is not yet in law. See the Northern Ireland farm solar guide.
Tax relief — the support that does still apply
Capital allowances are UK-wide and open all year. Solar panels are "special rate" plant and machinery (section 104A of the Capital Allowances Act 2001), which decides the reliefs available:
- Annual Investment Allowance: 100% of the cost set against profits in the year of purchase, up to £1 million a year — available to sole traders, partnerships and companies, and enough for almost any farm roof.
- 50% first-year allowance: companies can claim 50% of special-rate expenditure in year one, with the rest in the special rate pool.
- Special rate pool: 6% a year on a reducing balance for anything not relieved another way.
- Not available for solar: full expensing and the new 40% first-year allowance from 1 January 2026 both apply to main-rate plant only.
The detail, with worked examples for sole traders, partnerships and companies, is on our guide to capital allowances on solar panels. Two other reliefs matter for farm roofs: in England, plant generating renewable electricity mainly for use on the premises is excepted from business-rates valuations until 1 April 2035, and Scotland has an equivalent rule to 31 March 2035.
Export payments
In Great Britain, surplus electricity can earn money under the Smart Export Guarantee (Northern Ireland is outside it: there, Power NI pays 11.88p per kWh for microgeneration export from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027). Each licensed supplier sets its own rate — roughly 4p to 12p per kWh as at July 2026. For systems up to 50 kW, suppliers ask for MCS or an equivalent certification; from 50 kW to 5 MW, the installation must be certified to the supplier's satisfaction. Because a farm usually saves far more per kWh by using its own output than by exporting it, size the array around daytime demand rather than export.
Worked example — what a grant is really worth
A grant is not worth its face value to a profitable farm, because the grant-funded part of the cost does not qualify for capital allowances (section 532 of the Capital Allowances Act 2001; HMRC gives allowances on the net amount). Take a 50 kW rooftop system at the DESNZ 2025/26 median price for 10–50 kW systems, £1,262 per kW: £63,100. A 25% grant, if a round like IFP reopened, would be £15,775 — just above the old £15,000 minimum.
| Company, 25% corporation tax | Sole trader, 40% income tax | |
|---|---|---|
| No grant: tax relief on £63,100 | £15,775 | £25,240 |
| No grant: net cost | £47,325 | £37,860 |
| With a £15,775 grant: tax relief on £47,325 | £11,831 | £18,930 |
| With a grant: net cost | £35,494 | £28,395 |
| What the grant is worth after tax | £11,831 (75% of face value) | £9,465 (60% of face value) |
Assumptions: 100% Annual Investment Allowance, profits large enough to absorb it, the 25% main rate of corporation tax, and a 40% income-tax rate (rates differ in Scotland). Price: DESNZ Solar PV cost data 2025/26, median for 10–50 kW. Illustrative arithmetic, not tax advice.
That is why tax relief, not grants, does most of the work for farms in 2026 — and why a missed grant round is less of a loss than it looks. We explain the sum in more detail in is a farm solar grant worth its face value?
Farm solar funding timeline, 2022–2026
The dated record of the windows that matter to farm solar — useful for judging when a scheme is likely to reopen, and for spotting articles that still describe closed rounds as open.
| Dates | Nation | Scheme | Solar panels? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Jan – 16 Mar 2022 | England | Improving Farm Productivity round 1 (online checker) | No — renewable generation excluded |
| 18 May – 29 Jun 2022 | Wales | Small Grants – Efficiency, window 1 | No |
| 25 Jan – 21 Mar 2024 | England | Improving Farm Productivity round 2 (online checker) | Yes — roof or reservoir |
| 14 Jul – 22 Aug 2025 | Scotland | Future Farming Investment Scheme 2025 | No — listed as not eligible |
| 31 Jul 2025 | England | Improving Farm Productivity round 2 — full applications closed | — |
| 12 Jan – 27 Feb 2026 | Wales | Small Grants – Efficiency, window 5 (the last) | No |
| 17 Mar – 12 May 2026 | England | Farming Equipment and Technology Fund 2026 (closed at midday) | No |
| 2026/27 round (closed by 3 Nov 2026) | Northern Ireland | NISEP Commercial Energy Saving Scheme (20%, solar PV capped at £30,000) — closed for applications; next expected April 2027 | Yes — non-domestic buildings, when open |
| 1 Jul 2026 (launched) | Wales | Sustainable Agriculture Loan Scheme (3% loans) — registering interest, applications not yet open | Yes — renewable generation for on-farm use, once open |
| 21 Jul – 3 Sep 2026 | Northern Ireland | Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme, round 1 | Not on the item list |
| 28 Jul 2026 – 11 Dec 2026 (2026/27 selection) | Wales | Capital Production and Efficiency | No |
| 30 Jul – 1 Sep 2026 | England | Capital Grants 2026 | No |
| 22 Sep 2026 | England | Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI26) window 2 opened and closed | No |
| Winter 2026 (announced) | Scotland | Future Farming Investment Scheme, next round | Item list not yet published |
Sources: gov.uk and the Defra Farming blog (IFP, FETF, Capital Grants, SFI); ruralpayments.org and gov.scot (FFIS); gov.wales (Small Grants – Efficiency, Capital Production and Efficiency, the loan scheme); daera-ni.gov.uk (SFIS).
How to be ready if a grant round reopens
- Plan the array on a roof or reservoir. The last English grant excluded ground-mounted arrays and residential property, and wanted the power used mainly on the farm.
- Get your meter data. Twelve months of half-hourly data shows how much output the farm would use itself — the basis of both the business case and any application.
- Get quotations, but do not order or start work. Anything bought or begun before a grant's project start date is not eligible.
- Sort permissions early. Tenants need the landlord's agreement; check planning (planning permission for farm solar) and the grid connection.
- Watch the official pages. gov.uk's Funding for farmers page in England; ruralpayments.org for the Future Farming Investment Scheme item list in Scotland; gov.wales and the Development Bank of Wales in Wales; DAERA for the next Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme round in Northern Ireland, and Power NI's business solar page for the next NISEP round (expected April 2027, subject to funding approval).
If the numbers work without a grant — and on a farm with steady daytime demand they often do — waiting for a round that may never come can cost more in electricity than the grant would have been worth. Our farm solar cost guide shows what a system costs and earns.
Common questions about farm solar grants
Are there grants for solar panels on farms in the UK?
None is open as of 3 November 2026. The one grant that has covered business solar PV recently, Northern Ireland's NISEP-funded scheme run by Power NI (20% of the cost, capped at £30,000), has closed for applications for 2026/27, with the next round expected in April 2027, subject to funding approval. England's Improving Farm Productivity grant, which paid £15,000 to £100,000 towards solar on farm-building roofs and irrigation reservoirs, has closed and no further round has been announced, and the farm capital schemes in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland do not list solar panels. Wales's Development Bank of Wales 3% loan for on-farm renewables is at the register-your-interest stage, and tax relief through capital allowances applies everywhere.
How much is the solar farm grant in the UK?
The last one that funded farm solar — England's Improving Farm Productivity grant, round 2 — paid up to 25% of the cost of eligible items. For solar the minimum grant was £15,000 (25% of a £60,000 project) and the maximum £100,000 per business. That round has closed.
What is the Improving Farm Productivity grant for solar?
A Defra grant for English farm businesses. Round 2 funded solar PV panels, solar batteries, inverters, utility meters, electrical grid connections and power diverters, for systems mainly powering the farm and installed on farm-building roofs or irrigation reservoirs — not on residential property and not as a ground-based array. The online checker ran from 25 January to 21 March 2024 and full applications closed on 31 July 2025.
Is the Improving Farm Productivity grant still open in 2026?
No. Round 2 is closed, and gov.uk's Funding for farmers page (updated 22 September 2026) lists it as closed with no further round. The Farming Equipment and Technology Fund's 2026 window closed at midday on 12 May 2026.
What percentage of solar cost did the farm grant cover?
Up to 25% of the cost of eligible items under England's Improving Farm Productivity grant. None of the farm capital schemes in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland funds solar panels; Northern Ireland's NISEP business scheme paid 20% of the cost, capped at £30,000, but its 2026/27 round has closed.
Can you get a grant for ground-mounted solar on a farm?
No. The Improving Farm Productivity grant excluded ground-based solar arrays, and no current UK farm scheme funds them. Field-scale arrays are commercial projects paid for through leases, power purchase agreements or the Contracts for Difference auction.
Do tenant farmers qualify for solar grants?
Under the Improving Farm Productivity grant, tenants could apply but were responsible for getting any permissions they needed from their landlord, and a landlord could underwrite the agreement. Expect any future scheme to ask the same.
Can you get a grant for battery storage on a farm?
Solar batteries were an eligible item in Improving Farm Productivity round 2, which has closed. Scotland's Future Farming Investment Scheme listed battery storage as not eligible in 2025, and no current scheme in Wales or Northern Ireland lists it.
What solar grants are available for farmers in Scotland?
None for solar panels as of 3 November 2026. The Future Farming Investment Scheme's 2025 round listed solar panels and battery storage as not eligible; its 2026 round (grants of up to £20,000, opening from winter 2026) has not published its item list. CARES support is for non-profit community groups, and the Business Energy Scotland SME Loan is not accepting new solar PV applications.
Is there a grant for solar panels in Northern Ireland?
Not one that is open. Power NI’s NISEP-funded grant for business solar PV (20% of the cost, the business paying 80%, capped at £30,000) has closed for applications for 2026/27; Power NI expects the next round to open in April 2027, subject to funding approval. DAERA’s Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme (40% of eligible costs, up to £25,000) ran its first round from 21 July to 3 September 2026 without solar panels on its item list, the Farm Business Improvement Scheme – Capital closed in 2022 and excluded renewable energy, and the Rural Business Development Grant Scheme excludes solar. Export is paid at a supplier-set rate rather than through the Smart Export Guarantee (Power NI: 11.88p per kWh to 30 September 2027). Our Northern Ireland farm solar grants page sets out every scheme, how the NISEP rules work, and the tax relief that does apply.
Are there solar grants for farmers in Wales and Northern Ireland?
Not from the farm schemes: Wales's open Capital Production and Efficiency scheme and Northern Ireland's Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme do not list solar panels. In Northern Ireland, Power NI’s 20% NISEP grant for business solar PV has closed for its 2026/27 round, with the next expected in April 2027, subject to funding approval. In Wales the Development Bank of Wales’s Sustainable Agriculture Loan Scheme (launched 1 July 2026; £25,000 to £1 million at a fixed 3%, covering renewable energy generation for on-farm use) is at the register-your-interest stage: its page takes registrations of interest and says the bank will be in touch once further information is available, so it is not yet taking applications.
Can you combine a solar grant with capital allowances?
Yes, but a public grant comes off the cost you can claim on: under section 532 of the Capital Allowances Act 2001, expenditure met by a public body does not qualify. So a 25% grant is worth less than 25% to a profitable farm — about three-quarters of its face value to a company paying 25% corporation tax.
What government funding is available for solar farms?
For field-scale solar farms, none in the form of a farm grant: they are commercial generation projects funded by developers through land leases, power purchase agreements or Contracts for Difference. For solar on farm roofs, see the four-nation table on this page — as of 3 November 2026 the open routes are tax relief, export payments and, in Wales, the Development Bank of Wales Green Business Loan; the Welsh 3% farm loan is taking registrations of interest and Northern Ireland's NISEP solar round is closed for 2026/27.
Sources
- gov.uk — Improving Farm Productivity grant round 2 applicant guidance (updated 2 March 2026) and equipment definitions.
- gov.uk — Funding for farmers, growers and land managers (updated 22 September 2026).
- gov.uk — Farming Equipment and Technology Fund 2026 (updated 12 May 2026); Defra Farming blog, 24 February 2026.
- Defra Farming blog — Capital Grants 2026 now open (30 July 2026) and now closed (1 September 2026); SFI26 window 2 now closed (22 September 2026).
- gov.uk — Delinked payments (1 July 2026); RPA land-use codes (22 April 2026); Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier applicant's guide (21 July 2026).
- ruralpayments.org — Future Farming Investment Scheme guidance and A–Z eligible items (7 August 2025); gov.scot, "Boost for farmers and crofters" (3 August 2026).
- localenergy.scot — CARES funds; businessenergyscotland.org — SME Loan Scheme FAQs; Scottish Statutory Instrument 2023/32.
- gov.wales — Small Grants – Efficiency window 5 rules and item list (January 2026); Capital Production and Efficiency guidance (July 2026); Sustainable Farming Scheme description; "Welsh farms access low-interest loans" (29 June 2026). developmentbank.wales — Sustainable Agriculture Loan Scheme page ("register your interest", read 3 November 2026) and Green Business Loan Scheme.
- daera-ni.gov.uk — Sustainable Farming Investment Scheme announcement (7 July 2026) and round 1 item list; FBIS Capital ineligible items and FAQs. economy-ni.gov.uk — NI Renewables Obligation. uregni.gov.uk — NISEP List of Schemes April 2026 to March 2027 (updated), pp.2 and 33. powerni.co.uk — Renewable Prices & Tariffs (export 11.88p/kWh) and the Business & Farm solar PV grant page ("The grant scheme for 26/27 has now closed for applications"), both read 3 November 2026. investni.com — Energy Efficiency Capital Grant (paused).
- developmentbank.wales — Green Business Loan Scheme; record.senedd.wales — WQ96151. gov.wales — Capital Production and Efficiency general guidance (read 3 November 2026); Ynni Cymru 2026-27. NESO — TIA thresholds (12 May 2025). mygov.scot — Renewable Energy Generation Relief 2026-27.
- legislation.gov.uk — Capital Allowances Act 2001, sections 45S, 45U, 51A, 104A, 104D and 532.
- Ofgem — Smart Export Guarantee guidance for generators. DESNZ — Solar PV cost data 2025/26.