Govt approves 700-acre Cumbria solar farm
Construction of Ib vogt and Firma Energy’s Dean Moor Solar Farm by Workington will take between 18 months and two years to complete.
Work can start soon, now that the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero have granted a development consent order for the project.
Dean Moor Solar Farm is expected to be capable of generating 150 MegaWatts of energy. That is enough to power more than 50,000 homes, according to IB Vogt and Firma Energy.
The solar farm would be built on 691 acres situated west of the A5086, close to the villages of Gilgarran and Branthwaite Edge. The site is largely grazing land, a use that will continue for the 40 years it is operational as a solar farm.
Energy generated from the solar farm would be exported to Electricity North West’s grid network.
With a promise to deliver more than 10% biodiversity net gain, the solar farm plans include the planting of new trees and hedgerows, the cultivation of a wildflower meadow, and the provision of bird, bat, and invertebrate boxes.
Stantec led the delivery of the DCO application, providing planning and environmental expertise, as well as technical input around landscape, hydrology, noise, transport, ecology, and more.
Stantec’s UK director of environmental planning Robert Devas said: “Our integrated way of working enabled our teams to drive this clean energy project forward collaboratively for our client, resulting in a robust and well-coordinated successful submission.
“Our multidisciplinary approach to this DCO application helped create an environment in which bringing communities and stakeholders along with the design process was treated as a central objective,” he continued. Dean Moor Solar Farm will contribute significantly to the UK’s sustainability goals, while being responsibly planned and designed in relation to the local environment and communities.”
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Ib vogt director of UK and Nordics, Daniel Kiremidjian, noted that Dean Moor Solar Farm is the first of the company’s projects in the UK to secure a DCO.
“This is a significant milestone for Ib vogt in the UK and reflects the hard work of our team and partners, as well as the constructive engagement with local communities and stakeholders throughout the process,” he said.
Kiremidjian took a moment to thank TLT, who provided legal services for the DCO.
“Our success would not have been possible without the dedication, professionalism and knowledge of our legal team at TLT, led by Richard Marsh, who were extremely helpful at every step of the way,” he said.
For his part, Marsh said: “We were pleased to support such an important infrastructure project and to work closely with our partners at Stantec. It is an exciting time to be involved in nationally significant infrastructure, and we are proud to play a role in delivering projects that are critical to the UK’s future energy and infrastructure needs.”
Thursday’s DCO announcement was a big day for TLT, which also secured approval for the Peartree Hill Solar Farm in East Riding of Yorkshire.
TLT partner and head of the future energy sector Maria Connolly said: “These consents also demonstrate the increasingly important role that innovative legal and technical collaboration plays in delivering nationally significant infrastructure…
“We are so proud to be advising on some of the UK’s most impactful energy and infrastructure projects. As investment in renewable energy continues to accelerate, we remain committed to helping clients deliver the large-scale developments that will support the country’s net zero ambitions and future growth.”
You can review the planning documents for Dena Moor Solar Farm on the Planning Inspectorate’s National Infrastructure portal.
