Orchard Farm Solar Array
Orchard Farm Solar Array is a 5 Megawatt (MW) ground mounted array near Sittingbourne, Kent. It was our first project and went live in 2016. It has been exporting electricity to the grid ever since.
The solar array is 100% community owned and was part-funded by the first community share offer in North Kent and Medway.
Powering 1,400 homes
The Orchard Farm solar array has nearly 20,000 panels with a capacity of 5MW, enough to meet the equivalent annual electricity demand of around 1,400 homes (2019 figs).
Approx. 1,000 tonnes of carbon saved per annum*
*Digest of UK Energy Statistics 2020 report combined with metrics of energy produced from the solar farm provided by Bright Renewables
The array sits on low grade farmland. It was classified by an independent agricultural consultant as primarily interim Grade 3b agricultural land with around 25% Grade 3a. In the past, the site was used for brickearth extraction and the topsoil replaced. The land is classified as interim Grade 3b in recognition of the fact that restored land is more challenging to farm. We aim to improve the biodiversity of the site over our twenty five years of occupation, with wildflowers to attract pollinators and provide a habitat for wildlife.
Orchard Farm Solar Array is located next to another 5 MW solar array, which was purchased by our sister organisation Kent Community Energy in December 2023. The two projects share a grid connection but are electrically, legally and financially independent of each other.