Decision made on Aldi's solar panels bid for new Philadelphia Lane supermarket in Sunderland

Sunderland City Council’s planning department has approved an application for the new Aldi supermarket under construction at a site off Philadelphia Lane, between Shiney Row and Newbottle.

The site once housed a bus depot before its demolition and discount retailer Aldi Stores Ltd, back in 2024, submitted a planning bid to build a supermarket on the land.

Plans were approved at a meeting of the council’s Planning and Highways Committee the same year, and councillors were told the site would create around 40 full-time jobs.

At the time of writing, construction is still under way at the site with the structure of the new supermarket starting to take shape.

A new planning application linked to the development, submitted back in July, 2025, sought permission for the “installation of 222 solar PVs to the roof of the new foodstore.”

A covering letter submitted on behalf of Aldi Stores Ltd said the “maximum power output of the proposed PV panels is 144KW (DC); meaning that the proposed development will have a total generating capacity of 144KW”.

It was noted that the application “follows an extensive structural survey of the existing roof to ensure that the solar panels can be installed without any impact on the roofing structure”.

Those behind the scheme added the solar panels were “necessary and essential for Aldi to significantly reduce their carbon footprint and contribute towards mitigating climate change” and were part of a “nationwide drive to install solar PVs across Aldi’s estate.”

After considering the planning application, Sunderland City Council’s planning department approved it on September 1, 2025.

Council planners, in a decision report, said the solar panels were proposed on a “relatively shallow pitched roof” and would be “unlikely to cause glint or glare to the occupiers of the existing bungalows to the south of the site”.

The council’s conservation officer also added that the “array of PV panels” would have a “negligible additional impact on the setting of the adjacent listed former NCB Power Station, over and above the adverse impacts from the development of the store itself and surrounding housing that have already been considered as part of previous planning application”.

It was argued that there would be “no additional harm caused to the significance of the listed building” and that the proposal would “preserve the setting of heritage assets”.

The council decision report adds: “The principle of the proposed development can be supported given the provision of renewable energy and the detailed impacts have been found to be satisfactory.”

Applicants previously said that solar panels would not be “directly adjacent to any residential dwellings” and due to the building’s height, would be “limited in visual sightlines from public viewpoints”.

It was also noted that the plans would “result in the lowest possible harm” to nearby “heritage assets” and that any harm would be “easily outweighed by the benefits generated by the reduction in carbon emissions resulting from the energy use of the renewable technology”.

The applicant’s covering letter adds: “The solar PVs will be removed as soon as reasonably practicable when no longer needed.

“The solar PVs are necessary and essential for Aldi to significantly reduce their carbon footprint and contribute towards mitigating climate change.

“The development comprises just one store within a large nationwide drive to install solar PVs across Aldi’s estate which, cumulatively, will make a significant contribution towards the applicant’s desire to improve their sustainability efforts.”

Under planning conditions, the solar panels development must be brought forward within three years.

For more information on the plan and council decision, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search application reference number: 25/01670/FUL