Kent
Solar panels in Chatham, with the numbers shown.
Twelve panels (6.36 kWp) here make about 6,630 kWh a year for £6,360 installed, designed around your roof on a free 30-minute video call.
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Chatham's solar year
Chatham's best month is July, at 128.6 kWh per kWp; December manages 37.5. Over the year that comes to 1,043 kWh per kWp, 3% below our Kent county estimate.
Generation per kWp, month by month
Show the monthly figures
| Month | kWh/kWp |
|---|---|
| January | 38.2 |
| February | 51.1 |
| March | 88 |
| April | 118 |
| May | 125 |
| June | 126 |
| July | 129 |
| August | 114 |
| September | 100 |
| October | 69 |
| November | 48.1 |
| December | 37.5 |
Source: PVGIS v5.2 (European Commission JRC), SARAH3 database, 1 kWp, 14% system loss, 35 degree pitch, due south, checked September 2026.
For scale: 1,043 kWh per kWp in Chatham against 925, our GB average (the mean of our 85 county PVGIS estimates), which puts Chatham 13% above it.
How Chatham compares
Chatham is one of 44 Kent towns we track, and it ranks joint 35th of 44 for solar yield. The House of Commons Library settlement data classes it as a large town of 79,529 people. At 1,043 kWh per kWp a year, a typical 12 panel system here pays for itself in around 6.8 years on the 12p scenario: £930 of year one benefit against £6,360 installed, £247 of that benefit from cutting 26.32p imports with your own generation.
Every figure here assumes a clear, south-facing roof at 35 degrees. Yours will differ, which is what the free design call is for; until then, the calculator below tests panels, batteries and export rates on Chatham's own yield.
Medway is the planning authority covering Chatham, which the House of Commons Library classes as a large town.
The charger is in the installed price but left out of payback: charging savings depend on your mileage and tariff, which the design call models properly.
Your real roof and usage, worked through on a free 30-minute video call. Use the full form or leave three details below.
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Modelled for Chatham at 51.35583, 0.5303 on PVGIS data, with imports valued at 26.32p/kWh and solar at £1,000 per kWp installed. Sources and assumptions: help page.
Who runs the grid in Chatham
On NESO's licence-area map, Chatham is in South East England, which UK Power Networks operates. That makes UK Power Networks the network operator for any system fitted here.
Below 3.68kW per phase of inverter and battery output, the G98 route applies: the installation is notified to UK Power Networks within 28 days of commissioning, with no prior approval.
Anything bigger is a G99 case and is applied for first. Ofgem's guaranteed standard for a low voltage generation connection quotation is 45 working days, with £80 paid for each working day late, and it binds UK Power Networks as it does every network operator.
Sources: NESO DNO licence areas (3 May 2024); Ofgem, Distributed Generation Standards Direction guidance, checked 27 September 2026. G98 vs G99, explained.
Beyond the panels: heating and car charging in Chatham
A heat pump in Chatham
A heat pump does most of its work from November to February. Over those four months, 12 panels in Chatham make about 1,110 kWh, against 3,140 kWh from May to August, so winter heating runs mostly on grid electricity and the tariff matters more than the roof.
In England, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme pays £7,500 towards an air source or ground source heat pump and £2,500 towards an air-to-air one, with £1,500 more until March 2027 for homes heated by oil or LPG with no mains gas (gov.uk, checked 28 September 2026).
Charging an EV in Chatham
From April to September, 68% of a Chatham roof's yearly output arrives, peaking at about 820 kWh in July on 12 panels. A car parked at home in daylight can soak up what the house, at around 70 kWh of daytime use that month, cannot.
Renters and flat owners with private off-street parking can get 75% off a chargepoint and its installation, up to £500 per socket, until 31 March 2027 (gov.uk, checked 28 September 2026). The calculator above adds a 7.4kW smart charger from £1,100 installed.
Installed prices, the same in every town
Every system is designed around your roof on the free call before anything is fitted.
Solar panel servicing and repair in Chatham
Faults, servicing and ageing inverters follow the same economics in Chatham as anywhere else, and the guides below price them plainly.
Common questions about solar in Chatham
What does a solar panel system produce in Chatham?
Each kWp of panels in Chatham makes 1,043 kWh a year on PVGIS figures, so a typical 12-panel system produces around 6,630 kWh, from about 240 kWh in December up to 820 kWh in July.
What would 12 solar panels cost in Chatham?
£6,360 for 12 panels (6.36 kWp), the same as in every other place we cover, because solar is priced at £1,000 per kWp installed rather than by area. A battery adds its own installed price on top. Where Chatham differs is output: about 6,630 kWh a year from that system.
Would a system in Chatham need approval from the network operator?
Chatham is on UK Power Networks' network (South East England licence area). Systems up to 3.68kW per phase of inverter output follow G98: UK Power Networks is notified within 28 days of commissioning, with no approval needed first. Anything larger needs a G99 application before installation. Ofgem's guaranteed standard for a low voltage generation connection quotation is 45 working days, with £80 paid for each working day late, and it binds UK Power Networks as it does every network operator. Our G98 vs G99 guide explains both routes.
How much would export pay on a system in Chatham?
It is exported. With typical use and no battery, about 5,697 kWh of the 6,630 kWh a 12-panel system makes in Chatham goes to the grid, around £684 a year at 12p. A battery keeps more of it for the evening; the export rates table shows what suppliers pay.
Is solar worth it in Chatham in winter?
It works, but the year is lopsided. 68% of a Chatham roof's output lands between April and September; the four months from November to February give about 1,110 kWh on a 12-panel system. Payback is worked out on the whole year, not the winter.
How Chatham compares with its neighbours
Same satellite dataset, same assumptions, so the differences are real geography rather than modelling noise.
| Town | kWh per kWp a year | vs Chatham |
|---|---|---|
| Chatham | 1,043 | this town |
| Gillingham (Medway) | 1,047 | +4 kWh |
| Rochester | 1,043 | level |
| Snodland | 1,051 | +8 kWh |
| Hoo St Werburgh | 1,057 | +14 kWh |
| Larkfield | 1,059 | +16 kWh |
| Maidstone | 1,056 | +13 kWh |
Same PVGIS v5.2 query for every town. Small differences are within year-to-year weather; more than about 30 kWh per kWp apart is geography.
Also for Chatham: Solar panels in Chatham from OVO Solar & Battery
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Further reading for Chatham
Sourced, dated and written by us. The same ground we cover on your free call.
Do solar panels work in winter? Yes, just less than summer
Panels run on light, not sunshine. Cloud turns them down, not off. What that means for an awkward roof.
Read the guide →How much a battery saves by charging on cheap night rates
What charging at 8.5p and using at 26.32p is actually worth over a year.
Read the guide →What it really costs to charge an EV at home versus in public
Home off-peak charging costs a fraction of the public price. The arithmetic, and the tariff it depends on.
Read the guide →Are air source heat pumps any good? What owners actually report
The UK's largest survey found 80% of heat pump owners satisfied, against 70% for gas boilers.
Read the guide →What the Smart Export Guarantee actually is
The scheme obliges suppliers to pay above zero, and leaves the rate to them.
Read the guide →Your MCS certificate: what it shows, when it arrives, and how a Smart Export Guarantee supplier uses it
The document your export payments hang on. Who issues it, what it shows, and how to get a copy.
Read the guide →Get my free quote
Takes about two minutes. We call or text within one working day to book your free 30-minute video design call at a time that suits you. We design it around your roof and your numbers, and our MCS-certified, fully insured installation teams install it.