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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in PL24 (Cornwall)

See if solar pays off for you in Cornwall — price, savings and payback in under a minute (official UK data).

Solar Calculator

Change the settings below to see how costs and savings work for your situation.

System Size

Roof Direction

Battery Storage

Export Value

Your Numbers

Break-even
11.6 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,138
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£702
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£9,408
After paying itself off, you're this much ahead

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How we calculate this

Solar generation: Based on typical south-facing roof at 35° angle. We account for weather, dirt, and system losses (14%).

How much you'll use directly:

  • Without battery: You'll use about 40% of what you generate. The rest gets sold back to the grid.
  • With 5 kWh battery: You'll use about 70% (battery stores extra for evening use).
  • With 10 kWh battery: You'll use about 75% (more storage means less exported).
  • Panel-only payback: Bigger systems don’t shorten payback—cost and savings rise together per kW.
  • Battery & payback: Batteries raise self-use and cut bills, but added hardware cost often lengthens break-even at typical UK rates.
  • When a battery can still make sense:
    • Evening-heavy usage patterns
    • Time-of-use tariffs / cheap night rates
    • Low export rate vs. high unit rate
    • Heat pump or EV charging synergy
    • Optional backup/resilience (system-dependent)
    • Lower evening-hour CO₂ vs. grid

Costs: Battery prices are typically £700 per kWh. Export tariffs vary by supplier (usually 5–15p per kWh).

Grid connection: Systems up to about 3.7 kW typically need just a notification (G98). Larger systems may need permission (G99).

These are typical values based on average usage patterns. Your actual results will vary based on your roof, shading, and how you use electricity.

Your area in context

In Southern Western, the current unit rate is 26.82p/kWh with a 54.03p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 1049 kWh/kW — 36 above the regional median (1013).

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 4.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 1049 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.8p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.8p/kWh
Standing charge
54.0p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1049 kWh/kW
Export price (baseline)
10p/kWh

Browse the scenarios below. Each battery size has its own expand — open the one that matches your plan (or just explore). For each system size (2–8 kW) we show annual output, how much you use directly, what gets exported, annual benefit, upfront cost, break-even, and a 20-year net. Negative numbers are possible — that’s the honest trade-off when adding more battery than your usage profile justifies.

No battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £877, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 11.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2098 kWh 839 kWh 1259 kWh £225 £126 £351 £4,069 11.6 yrs £2,950
3 kW 3147 kWh 1259 kWh 1888 kWh £338 £189 £526 £6,104 11.6 yrs £4,424
4 kW 4196 kWh 1678 kWh 2517 kWh £450 £252 £702 £8,138 11.6 yrs £5,899
5 kW 5245 kWh 2098 kWh 3147 kWh £563 £315 £877 £10,173 11.6 yrs £7,374
6 kW 6294 kWh 2517 kWh 3776 kWh £675 £378 £1,053 £12,207 11.6 yrs £8,849
7 kW 7342 kWh 2937 kWh 4405 kWh £788 £441 £1,228 £14,242 11.6 yrs £10,323
8 kW 8391 kWh 3357 kWh 5035 kWh £900 £503 £1,404 £16,276 11.6 yrs £11,798

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

3 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,054, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 11.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2098 kWh 1259 kWh 839 kWh £338 £84 £421 £6,169 14.6 yrs £2,261
3 kW 3147 kWh 1888 kWh 1259 kWh £506 £126 £632 £8,204 13.0 yrs £4,441
4 kW 4196 kWh 2517 kWh 1678 kWh £675 £168 £843 £10,238 12.1 yrs £6,622
5 kW 5245 kWh 3147 kWh 2098 kWh £844 £210 £1,054 £12,273 11.6 yrs £8,802
6 kW 6294 kWh 3776 kWh 2517 kWh £1,013 £252 £1,264 £14,307 11.3 yrs £10,983
7 kW 7342 kWh 4405 kWh 2937 kWh £1,182 £294 £1,475 £16,342 11.1 yrs £13,163
8 kW 8391 kWh 5035 kWh 3357 kWh £1,350 £336 £1,686 £18,376 10.9 yrs £15,344

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,142, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 12.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2098 kWh 1468 kWh 629 kWh £394 £63 £457 £7,569 16.6 yrs £1,567
3 kW 3147 kWh 2203 kWh 944 kWh £591 £94 £685 £9,604 14.0 yrs £4,100
4 kW 4196 kWh 2937 kWh 1259 kWh £788 £126 £914 £11,638 12.7 yrs £6,633
5 kW 5245 kWh 3671 kWh 1573 kWh £985 £157 £1,142 £13,673 12.0 yrs £9,167
6 kW 6294 kWh 4405 kWh 1888 kWh £1,182 £189 £1,370 £15,707 11.5 yrs £11,700
7 kW 7342 kWh 5140 kWh 2203 kWh £1,378 £220 £1,599 £17,742 11.1 yrs £14,233
8 kW 8391 kWh 5874 kWh 2517 kWh £1,575 £252 £1,827 £19,776 10.8 yrs £16,767

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

7.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,168, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 13.2 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2098 kWh 1531 kWh 566 kWh £411 £57 £467 £9,319 19.9 yrs £28
3 kW 3147 kWh 2297 kWh 850 kWh £616 £85 £701 £11,354 16.2 yrs £2,668
4 kW 4196 kWh 3063 kWh 1133 kWh £821 £113 £935 £13,388 14.3 yrs £5,307
5 kW 5245 kWh 3829 kWh 1416 kWh £1,027 £142 £1,168 £15,423 13.2 yrs £7,946
6 kW 6294 kWh 4594 kWh 1699 kWh £1,232 £170 £1,402 £17,457 12.5 yrs £10,585
7 kW 7342 kWh 5360 kWh 1982 kWh £1,438 £198 £1,636 £19,492 11.9 yrs £13,224
8 kW 8391 kWh 6126 kWh 2266 kWh £1,643 £227 £1,869 £21,526 11.5 yrs £15,863

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

10 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,186, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 14.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2098 kWh 1573 kWh 524 kWh £422 £52 £474 £11,069 23.3 yrs £-1,580
3 kW 3147 kWh 2360 kWh 787 kWh £633 £79 £712 £13,104 18.4 yrs £1,129
4 kW 4196 kWh 3147 kWh 1049 kWh £844 £105 £949 £15,138 16.0 yrs £3,839
5 kW 5245 kWh 3933 kWh 1311 kWh £1,055 £131 £1,186 £17,173 14.5 yrs £6,549
6 kW 6294 kWh 4720 kWh 1573 kWh £1,266 £157 £1,423 £19,207 13.5 yrs £9,259
7 kW 7342 kWh 5507 kWh 1836 kWh £1,477 £184 £1,660 £21,242 12.8 yrs £11,968
8 kW 8391 kWh 6294 kWh 2098 kWh £1,688 £210 £1,898 £23,276 12.3 yrs £14,678

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

13.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,204, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 16.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2098 kWh 1615 kWh 483 kWh £433 £48 £481 £13,519 28.1 yrs £-3,889
3 kW 3147 kWh 2423 kWh 724 kWh £650 £72 £722 £15,554 21.5 yrs £-1,109
4 kW 4196 kWh 3231 kWh 965 kWh £866 £97 £963 £17,588 18.3 yrs £1,671
5 kW 5245 kWh 4038 kWh 1206 kWh £1,083 £121 £1,204 £19,623 16.3 yrs £4,452
6 kW 6294 kWh 4846 kWh 1448 kWh £1,300 £145 £1,444 £21,657 15.0 yrs £7,232
7 kW 7342 kWh 5654 kWh 1689 kWh £1,516 £169 £1,685 £23,692 14.1 yrs £10,012
8 kW 8391 kWh 6461 kWh 1930 kWh £1,733 £193 £1,926 £25,726 13.4 yrs £12,793

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

Figures are illustrative and use the same method as the calculator above. For exact results, adjust your roof direction, tariff, and usage in the calculator.

Insights for PL24

Figures below are tailored to PL24 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1341 of 2182
4.8 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #235 of 2997
10.1 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£808 /yr • £8,138 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2156 of 2997
24.4% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£197 fixed • ~£808 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.82p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
54.03p/day
Local Sunshine
1049kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1049 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
4.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 69% • Flats: 10% • Bungalows: 20% Based on 2,963 properties

Coverage

Cornwall (100%)

Areas Covered

St Blazey, Fowey, Tywardreath & Par, St Austell Bethel & Holmbush, Lostwithiel & Lanreath

Data Sources & Assumptions

Solar yield: PVGIS (EU Joint Research Centre), January 2025 data

Electricity rates: Ofgem price cap, Q4 2025

Installation costs: MCS certified installer data, March 2025

Property data: EPC open data (Open Government Licence), aggregated

All estimates are typical values. Actual results vary based on your specific situation, roof characteristics, and usage patterns.

Compare nearby areas

Nearby in Southern Western

PL25 (Cornwall)
≈4.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,029 kWh/kWp · -2% vs PL24
PL23 (Cornwall)
≈5.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,041 kWh/kWp · -1% vs PL24
PL22 (Cornwall)
≈6.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,019 kWh/kWp · -3% vs PL24
PL26 (Cornwall)
≈7.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,028 kWh/kWp · -2% vs PL24
PL31 (Cornwall)
≈13.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~982 kWh/kWp · -6% vs PL24
PL30 (Cornwall)
≈16.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~990 kWh/kWp · -6% vs PL24

Similar sunshine across the UK

TN21 (Wealden)
~1,049 kWh/kWp · -0% vs PL24
NR13 (Broadland)
~1,048 kWh/kWp · -0% vs PL24
ME10 (Swale)
~1,048 kWh/kWp · -0% vs PL24