The proposed East Park Energy solar farm is considered a ‘nationally significant’ project.
A major new solar farm is proposed to be built near St Neots, across the Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire border.
The proposed East Park Energy solar farm is considered a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, which means that a final decision on whether it can be built will ultimately be made by the government.
Brockwell Storage and Solar, the company behind the project, said the solar farm would help “strengthen the UK’s energy independence by delivering more homegrown power”, by providing a “low carbon source of electricity”.
The company submitted a Development Consent Order (DCO) application to the planning inspectorate in October last year, asking for permission to build the new solar farm. Here is what we know so far about this project.
Where is it proposed to be built?
The new solar farm is proposed to be built over four sites to the north-west of St Neots. Site A is proposed to be located west of the B660 between Pertenhall and Swineshead. Site B is proposed to be built on fields between Pertenhal, Keysoe and Little Staughton.
Site C is proposed to be located to the south of Great Staughton across fields to the south of the River Kym; and Site D is proposed to be built across fields between Great Staughton and Hail Weston.
Ground mounted solar panels are proposed to be installed across the sites, with a battery energy storage facility also proposed at Site D, which would be capable of storing up to 100 megawatts of electricity. The solar farm is proposed to be connected to the electricity transmission network at a substation in Eaton Socon.
The developer said the amount of land it would need to build, operate and decommission the project totalled 773 hectares, however they said solar panels would only be installed on 57 per cent of this land.
Alongside the solar panels the developer has said they will also undertake work to “enhance and maintain the natural environment”, setting out an aim to deliver at least a 10 per cent biodiversity net gain.
The solar farm is only proposed to be in place for 40 years, after which it would be decommissioned, which the developer said is likely to take place in 2070.
How much power would it generate?
The developer has said the proposed solar farm would be able to generate up to 400 megawatts of electricity, which it said would be enough to supply approximately 108,000 homes.
The developer claimed that the project would “more than double” the existing solar energy generation across Bedford borough and Huntingdonshire district.
How can people share their views on the plans?
The application is currently in the pre-examination phase, which is when people can register with the planning inspectorate to have their say on the plans during the examination period. The deadline for people to register is at 11.59pm on January 14.
When will a decision be made?
A decision on the project is not expected to be made until later this year, or towards the start of 2027 at the earliest. Following the pre-examination phase the project will enter the examination period, where planning inspectors will assess the plans and hear from both the developer and people who have registered to have their say.
The examination stage can take up to six months to be completed. Following the examination period, the examining authority has three months to write a report recommending whether the project should go ahead or not and has to submit this to the relevant Secretary of State.
Once the Secretary of State has this report they will have three months to make a final decision, although this can sometimes be delayed.
In the developer’s cover letter, submitted as part of the DCO application, they said that if permission is given in the winter of 2026/27, they anticipate that they could start work on site in early 2028, and potentially complete the project by mid-to-late 2030.
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