The array will make use of the 3.45 hectares of roof space and the 20,000 solar panels will have a capacity of 5MW.
It is anticipated that at peak generation, the system will produce up to 40 per cent of Bentley’s energy requirements and reduce carbon usage by 2,500 tonnes per year.
Nick Boyle, chief executive at Lightsource Renewable Energy, the company developing the array, said this project “demonstrates the tremendous potential the UK’s rooftops have for harnessing the power of the sun”.
He added: “With greater policy stability, the UK’s solar market is set to go from strength-to-strength this year.”
Michael Straughan, Bentley’s member of the board for manufacturing, said: “Unlikely as it may seem our 1940s plant in Crewe is ideally situated to generate solar power as the ‘saw tooth’ factory roofs are south facing at an angle of 20 degrees.
“We take the sustainability of our products and factory very seriously and we are always looking for ways to reduce emissions and improve energy efficiency.”