UK’s Largest Solar & Storage Project Now Operational

In a major boost to the UK’s renewable energy transition, Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners announced that the 373 MW Cleve Hill Solar Park has officially entered commercial operation.

Located in Kent, the site also includes a 150 MW co-located battery energy storage system, which makes Cleve Hill not only a powerhouse in generation but also a critical asset for grid stability. The project is now the largest solar and battery storage installation ever built in the UK.

A Project of Unprecedented Scale

According to Quinbrook, Cleve Hill’s capacity is more than four times larger than any other operating solar project in the country. During its commissioning phase, the park reached output levels equivalent to 0.7 percent of the UK’s total electricity demand, Quinbrook claims.

Notably, it was also the first solar plus storage project to be approved under the UK’s Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) regime, underlining its strategic importance.

Backed by Record Financing

The project’s development was supported by one of the largest financing deals ever undertaken for a solar-storage project in the UK. Quinbrook secured a £218.5 million (USD 300 million) term loan, along with a £20 million (USD 27.5 million) VAT facility from major lenders Lloyds and NatWest.

Quinbrook has also locked in a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with Tesco PLC, making it the largest corporate solar PPA in the UK to date.

“This is a landmark moment for the UK’s clean energy transition,” said Keith Gains, Managing Director and UK Regional Leader at Quinbrook. “Cleve Hill sets a new benchmark for what large-scale solar projects can achieve in supporting decarbonisation and local communities.”

Despite construction challenges, the project was delivered in partnership with Private Energy Partners, Quinbrook’s development affiliate. Work on-site began in early 2023, following development consent granted in May 2020.

Quinbrook’s Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Rory Quinlan, added, “Projects like Cleve Hill prove that the UK’s renewables goals are not just ambitious – they’re achievable. This is exactly the kind of scale we need to move the dial.”

The project also stood out in Round 4 of the UK government’s Contract for Difference (CfD) auction scheme, securing the largest CfD award ever granted to a solar project.

47 GW by 2030

The UK government aims to achieve 45-47GW GW of solar capacity by 2030, necessitating an acceleration in solar deployment to meet energy targets. The country added 1.2 GW of solar capacity in 2024, marking a 7.5 percent increase from the previous year. As of Q1 2025, the UK achieved a total solar capacity of 18 GW.