Plan for UK’s biggest solar farm will be biggest test of Government’s anti-nimby drive
Ed Miliband will shortly rule on whether an eight-square-mile solar farm capable of powering 180,000 homes should get the go-ahead
The Government faces the biggest test so far of its anti-Nimby drive as it decides whether to give the green light to what would be the UK’s biggest solar farm.
The Cottam Solar project would occupy 12.5 square kilometres – almost eight square miles – of farmland on the border of Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, generating enough electricity to power 180,000 homes.
It would be considerably bigger than any solar farm currently in operation, generating eight times the energy of the largest site at the moment, Llanwern in Wales.
And it would be almost 25 per cent bigger than Sunnica, the giant solar development on the border of Cambridgeshire and Suffolk, which Energy Secretary Ed Miliband waved through this month just three days into his new job – despite being opposed by the Government’s own Planning Inspectorate.
He now has until 5 September to make a decision on Cottam Solar, near the market town of Gainsborough.
Mr Miliband will consider the need to quickly and dramatically scale up solar and onshore wind generation if the UK is to have any chance of meeting highly ambitious and legally binding targets to make power virtually net zero in just six years.
And he will set that against very strong local opposition and the unprecedented size of solar farm, by UK standards, experts said.
Simon Skelton, a retired coal and gas power station worker who moved to the area in search of a country lifestyle, is one of the locals strongly opposed to the project.
“I live in the middle of the Cottam Solar project site and I just can’t image what it will do to the landscape – it will be horrendous. The panels are 4.5 metres high, which is the height of a double decker bus, covering three thousand acres,” he told i.
“Apart from the visual impact it’s a very inefficient use of agricultural land. If we’re going to go down this route of putting solar panels everywhere then we should start on rooftops first to see whether we can do it that way – before we start taking up huge amounts of farmland, which we feel is foolhardy.”
Jerry Parker, a retired IT business owner who lives in the nearby village of Cammeringham, told i: “We would say we’re not Nimbys. A Nimby, to me, is somebody who wants nothing near them, no matter what they are and why they might be placed there. We don’t fall into that category.
“It’s not because we’re Nimbys, it’s because solar technology is inefficient. It takes vast amounts of land to produce the power it does.
“We just seem to be inundated in Lincolnshire with these projects. We’re going to live in an industrial zone and none of us live where we do because we want that type of environment. I think it’s a David and Goliath situation we have here.”
Sir Edward Leigh, Conservative MP for Gainsborough, said the project “is utterly inappropriate. By building on quality agricultural land, we will destroy a natural resource in the heart of England’s green and pleasant land.”
On Monday, a major report led by the Royal Academy of Engineering called for decarbonising the electricity grid by the end of the decade to be treated as a national mission similar to the work of the Covid vaccines taskforce.
The panel of behind the report, including science minister Sir Patrick Vallance, suggested the Government’s target of ”clean power by 2030” could see net-zero energy generation on three quarters of days.
On remaining days, when wind or sunshine levels are lower, small amounts of electricity from gas power stations would top up supplies.
Dr Simon Harrison of engineering consultancy Mott MacDonald, who worked on the report, said: “The scale of work required to decarbonise the electricity system in such a short period of time cannot be underestimated. A radical shift in our approach will be needed.”
What the Royal Academy of Engineering report is calling for:
- Strong central leadership, backed by the Prime Minister, and a clear strategic plan for the country to deliver the infrastructure needed.
- Ministers must get the public and industry on board with the “mission” to deliver clean power by 2030, and spell out the benefits which include…
- Personal benefits – for example lower bills from electricity tariffs that let the supplier have flexibility on when to charge an electric vehicle;
- Local benefits – for example the jobs clean power can bring to an area;
- Benefits for society as whole – avoiding the worst impacts of climate change, combating respiratory illnesses by switching from polluting boilers and vehicles; reducing costs to the NHS because of this;
- The Government must tackle difficult decisions on planning, consents and delays to connecting new schemes to the grid – such as local opposition to overhead power lines, or the higher costs on bills of putting them underground.
However, he added: “We not advocating for running roughshod over the planning system”.
Ed Griffiths of Barbour ABI, which provides construction data to the Government, was not involved in that report, but said: “The Cottam Solar decision looks set to be the biggest test case yet for the Government’s determination to push ahead with new solar farms.
“We have consistently seen a lot of planning activity for green energy projects in Lincolnshire and, at approximately 3,000 acres and 600 megawatts, our research shows Cottam would be the biggest solar development anywhere in the UK.”
A spokesperson for Island Green Power, the London-based renewable energy developer behind Cottam Solar, said: “Since 2021, we have been working with the local councils, communities and stakeholders to develop proposals for Cottam Solar Project, which have also gone through rigorous examination by the Government’s Planning Inspectorate.
“The end result is a proposal that, if approved, will make a significant contribution to the Government’s commitment to make Britain a clean energy superpower, creating a renewable source of electricity that is enough to power 180,000 UK households annually.
“Beyond delivering affordable, renewable electricity, we’re pleased that our final proposals will improve biodiversity across the area. Environmental studies suggest there will be improvements of up to 96 per cent measured in habitat units.
“At the same time, we’re committed to providing direct funding to local communities near to the project. This will be scoped in consultation over the coming months.”
Mr Miliband has been sent the Planning Inspectorate’s report and recommendation – although he has not said whether it is for or against the project.
However, he disregarded a recommendation against development earlier this month when he gave permission to Sunnica – so he will not automatically go with the inspectorate’s advice.
The Department for Energy and Net Zero said it was unable to comment on Cottam Solar because it is a live planning application. A spokesperson added: “Solar power is crucial to achieving net zero, providing an abundant source of cleaner, cheaper energy.
“The Energy Secretary has taken immediate action to boost the role of solar – approving three major solar projects and launching a rooftop revolution for solar panels on new homes.
“We will make tough decisions with ambition and urgency – all part of our plan to make the UK a clean energy superpower.”
Earlier this month, Mr Miliband said “solar power is crucial to achieving net zero” and he has declared his intention to drive through onshore wind and solar farms where the case for them is merited.
On Friday he wrote to the developers of Cottam Solar looking for further clarification on any potential harm caused to fish by the electromagnetic fields that would be generated by the solar farm; and on targets to boost biodiversity on the site.
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