Aldi plans major changes at Sunderland supermarket that customers will barely notice
Plans for hundreds of solar panels at a Sunderland supermarket have been submitted to council development bosses.
Sunderland City Council’s planning department has received an application for the Aldi supermarket in the Pennywell Industrial Estate area.
The retail giant is seeking planning permission to install “270 solar PVs panels” to the roof of the foodstore to provide a “total maximum power output [of] 144.45kw.”
A cover letter submitted with the plans states the planning 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”.
It was noted that the proposals also “form part of a wider programme of solar PV installations across the Aldi estate in both the UK and Ireland”.
The goal of the solar PV installations, planning documents state, include “significantly reducing Aldi’s carbon footprint and contributing towards mitigating climate change”.
It was noted that the roof-mounted solar PV panels would be “limited in visual sightlines from public viewpoints” due to the height of the building and would be “acceptable additions in such locations from a visual amenity perspective”.
Those behind the scheme also said there “would not be any loss of residential amenity as a result of any glare from the panels for neighbours” and that solar PV panels would be “installed as soon as is commercially possible” and “removed as soon as reasonably practicable when no longer needed”.
The cover letter adds: “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.”
A decision on the planning application is expected in coming months, following a council consultation exercise.
For more information on the plans, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search application reference number: 25/02964/PCZ
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