Ground-mounted solar has quietly become the biggest growth story in UK construction. After a record-breaking 2025, forecasters expect the ground-mount segment to grow by up to 60% again in 2026, potentially passing 4GWp installed in a single year for the first time. Solar now makes up around 70% of all new UK solar capacity added, up from 60% just two years ago — and with the government targeting 45-47GW of total solar capacity by 2030, that growth curve isn't slowing down anytime soon.
For civils contractors and groundworkers, that's a lot of new sites needing tracks, compounds, cable runs and drainage.
Why solar farms are suddenly everywhere
A few things are driving the boom at once:
Falling costs and better economics. Utility-scale solar is now one of the cheapest forms of new electricity generation available, which has pulled in a wave of developer investment.
Policy support. The government's Clean Power 2030 targets, streamlined planning routes (local authorities can now approve solar farms up to 100MW without going through the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects process), and expanded Contracts for Difference auction rounds have all removed friction from getting projects consented and built.
Land availability. Solar farms currently cover roughly 0.1% of UK land, with government plans allowing this to rise to around 0.3% — so there's a long runway of agricultural, brownfield and former industrial land still available. Sites are increasingly being combined with battery energy storage systems (BESS), adding even more hardstanding and compound area to each project.
Grid connection reform. Bottlenecks remain a real constraint, but reforms are gradually clearing the backlog of projects waiting to connect, releasing more sites into construction.
The upshot: whether it's a 5MW farm on the edge of a local authority area or an 800MW+ Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, the number of these sites moving from planning into construction is rising fast — and each one needs a proper civils and drainage package.
What a solar farm actually needs from a civils supplier
The panel rows themselves usually sit on undisturbed, permeable ground. The civils and drainage requirement is concentrated around the hardstanding, access and cable infrastructure built around them:
Access tracks and haul roads — Running between rows and out to the highway, these need edge drainage to stop surface water undermining the sub-base. Channel drainage sized to the expected traffic loading is the standard solution here — typically A15 pedestrian-rated or B125 grade channel for lighter-trafficked tracks.
Substation, inverter and BESS compounds — These see heavier, more frequent plant traffic, both during construction and ongoing maintenance. D400-rated channel drain is generally the right specification for compound hardstanding, stepping up to heavy-duty F900 slot drain around areas with cranes, HGVs or piling rigs during the build phase.
Surface water attenuation — Planning conditions on solar sites almost always require controlled discharge or infiltration from hardstanding areas before it reaches a watercourse. Soakaway and attenuation crates sized to the compound catchment area are the standard approach, often paired with flow controls to manage discharge rate.
Silt and sediment control — Groundworks during construction significantly increase runoff sediment, and this is frequently a specific planning or environmental condition. Silt filter chambers or vortex separators ahead of any soakaway or discharge point handle this.
Cable ducting — This is one of the highest-volume product requirements on any solar site, given the length of DC and AC cabling running between panel strings, combiner boxes, inverters and the substation. Electrical ducting protects these runs, with duct access chambers at joints and pull points.
Chamber and cover access — Wherever ducts or drainage need maintenance access, inspection chambers and manhole covers rated to the expected traffic loading complete the installation.
Land drainage — On agricultural sites, existing field drains often need to be maintained, diverted or tied into around the new infrastructure. Land drainage pipe is used to keep these systems functioning through and after construction.
The bottom line
Ground-mounted solar isn't a niche market anymore — it's one of the fastest-growing categories of civil engineering work in the UK, and it's only going to accelerate as more Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects and locally-consented farms move into construction over the next few years. Getting the drainage and civils package right — attenuation, silt control, channel drain load ratings, and cable ducting — is what keeps these projects compliant with planning conditions and out of trouble down the line.
If you're specifying or ordering for a solar project, get in touch with our team or send us your drawing for a free take-off.