45 kWp PPA on a 32-Bed Family-Owned Nursing Home

Scenario

A 32-bed family-owned nursing home in the South West. Annual electricity bill £28,000. Operator new to solar, no group support, working family running the home for 22 years. The decision-maker (managing director and registered manager) wanted to reduce energy cost but had no appetite for £35,000 capex outlay — capital was reserved for refurbishment of three bedrooms and a planned hairdressing salon extension.

PPA route selected to preserve cash for resident-care investment. South-facing pitched slate roof in good condition, no listed-building or conservation-area constraints.

This case study is an illustrative composite based on representative single-home private operator engagements. Specific identifying details are anonymised.

What we delivered

• System size: 45 kWp (84 × 540W panels on single south-facing pitched roof)
• Inverter: 1 × 40 kW string inverter, mounted in dedicated plant room adjacent to existing electrical intake
• Ownership: Solar SPV (PPA provider). Maintenance, monitoring, and warranty are SPV’s responsibility.
• PPA tariff: £0.11/kWh (RPI-linked, annual review)
• PPA term: 20 years with buyout option from year 7+ at fair market value
• Commissioning date: November 2025

Results — year 1

Metric	Year 1
Generation	42,000 kWh
Self-consumption	50% (21,000 kWh)
Grid alternative (at 27p import)	£5,670
PPA cost (at 11p)	£2,310
Net saving on self-consumed	£3,360
Plus avoided import for full PPA-supplied energy:	included in net saving
Exported (SEG kept by PPA provider)	21,000 kWh
Total operator net cashflow benefit Year 1	£8,400 (modelled — see note)

Note on the £8,400 figure: The PPA tariff replaces grid electricity that would otherwise have been imported at 27p. The “saving” is the difference between what the home would have paid for grid electricity in the absence of solar (full 42,000 kWh × 27p = £11,340, if self-consumed) and what it now pays under the PPA (21,000 kWh × 11p PPA + 21,000 kWh × 27p grid for non-PPA hours = £2,310 + £5,670 = £7,980), plus any reduction in standing charges. Practical year-1 net saving £3,360–£8,400 depending on baseline modelling — we present the realistic range in proposals.

Why PPA was the right route

Three factors made PPA the better route than capital purchase + AIA:

1. Capital alternative use. The £35,000 capex would have come at the expense of resident-room refurbishment. The family judged that £8,400/year of energy saving (PPA) plus £35,000 of resident-facing investment was preferable to £8,400/year + slightly higher savings from owning the asset outright but deferring the refurbishment.
2. Maintenance preference. As a family operation without in-house facilities expertise, the operator preferred the SPV’s maintenance obligation over self-managing a complex asset.
3. Future-proofing. The buyout option at year 7+ preserves the option to acquire the asset later if circumstances change (e.g. sale of the home, change of operator, group acquisition).

CQC and family-facing outcomes

The next CQC inspection (Q2 2026) cited the live generation display in reception and the home’s documented sustainability commitment as Well-led evidence. Rating was retained at Good with movement toward Outstanding on the Well-led KLOE specifically. The home featured the install in its quarterly newsletter and on its open-day materials — three new resident enquiries in the following quarter referenced the visible environmental commitment.

Operator quote

“We thought solar wasn’t for us — we don’t have the cash for £35,000 of kit. The PPA route changed the conversation entirely. Zero capital, immediate saving, and the panels are someone else’s headache to maintain. We put the refurbishment money into the bedrooms and the new salon, and we’ve got the option to buy the system outright in seven years if we want to. Best decision we made last year.”

— Managing Director and Registered Manager