Holiday Inn Express Cardiff Airport

This commercial solar PV project at Holiday Inn Express Cardiff Airport, an IHG Hotel, showcases a large-scale rooftop renewable energy installation designed to improve energy efficiency, reduce grid electricity costs, and support lower-carbon hotel operations. Located at Port Road, Rhoose, CF62 3BT, the system delivers a total installed solar capacity of 128.35 kWdc across multiple roof areas.

The installation is built using 302 Trina Vertex S 425W black framed mono solar panels, selected for their high efficiency and suitability for commercial rooftop applications. The panels are paired with 151 SolarEdge P850 optimisers and a SolarEdge Synergy 100 kW three-phase inverter, creating a smart solar architecture that improves panel-level performance, supports design flexibility, and helps mitigate the impact of variable roof conditions and shading.

The array has been configured across nine strings, with seven strings of 30 modules, one string of 52 modules, and one string of 40 modules. This layout was engineered to make effective use of the available roof space while maintaining inverter compatibility and safe electrical performance. The design documentation confirms compliance with voltage, current, and string length operating parameters, ensuring that the system remains within inverter and optimiser limits under expected operating conditions.

From an electrical perspective, the system includes integrated DC isolation within the inverter, dedicated AC isolation, three-phase metering, and solar cable runs designed to keep voltage drop low. The design pack indicates voltage drop values of approximately 0.83% at maximum power point, reflecting a commercially robust installation approach that helps preserve system efficiency across longer cable routes.

Performance modelling included separate string-by-string analysis for orientation, inclination, and shading impact. While some roof areas show reduced yield due to shading factors, the overall system is still expected to generate approximately 85,148 kWh per year according to the attached performance summary. For a hotel environment with significant daytime electricity demand, this level of generation can offset a meaningful proportion of on-site power usage, particularly for core building services and daily operations.

In environmental terms, the installation is expected to save approximately 19.8 tonnes of CO₂ per year, helping the site reduce its operational carbon footprint while contributing to wider sustainability objectives in the hospitality sector. For hotels seeking to improve ESG performance and manage rising utility costs, rooftop solar offers a practical long-term investment with visible carbon reduction benefits.

Overall, the Holiday Inn Express Cardiff Airport project demonstrates SolarTech’s ability to deliver technically detailed commercial solar PV systems for hospitality clients, combining strong engineering design, optimiser-based performance control, and reliable long-term generation. It is a strong example of how hotel buildings can use rooftop solar to improve energy efficiency, reduce emissions, and strengthen operational resilience.