Norfolk could soon be home to the UK's largest solar farm
Developers appear to be planning a 5,000 acre site in the south of the county
Norfolk is set for its biggest solar farm yet, with developers planning a 5,000 acre site in the south of the county.
The project – which would be by far the largest in the UK – could be built on land between Long Stratton and Diss.
It is in its early stages but energy firms RPC and Elmya have sought permission to connect the facility to the National Grid near the village of Gissing.
The companies have not yet revealed exactly where the panels will be placed but say they are looking at sites “in the area”.
They have also not disclosed the precise size of the plant, but say they hope to generate 900 megawatts of power on site.
Until now, the biggest planned solar farm for Norfolk – and the largest in the pipeline in the UK – is High Grove, a 4,000 acre site near Dereham that is expected to produce 720 megawatts.
This suggests that the Gissing plant could be around 5,000 acres.
That is nearly 20 times the size of the current biggest in the UK, which spans 260 acres.
Several solar farms planned for Norfolk
In recent weeks, plans for several huge solar farms in Norfolk have emerged, as the UK government tries to hit its ambitious net zero targets.
In addition to the new Gissing project, there are also proposals for East Pye, which will cover 2,700 acres around several villages near Long Stratton, High Grove, the 4,000-acre scheme near Dereham and Swaffham, and the Droves, spanning 2,800 acres on an adjoining site.
If they all go ahead, the county’s solar stock could be just one large project away from matching the size of the Sandringham estate, which stretches across some 20,000 acres.
In contrast, it is understood that at the beginning of the year there were just 2,200 acres of solar farms in Norfolk.
The plans have prompted fierce opposition in many rural communities, who have raised concerns about the loss of farmland and the implications for food security.
They are also worried about the cost and efficiency of the schemes, as well as the impact on rural landscapes.
Because of their size, a decision on whether they can go ahead will ultimately rest with Ed Miliband, the secretary of state for energy and net zero, rather than local councils.
"Under attack"
This has led Kay Mason Billig, leader of Norfolk County Council, to accuse the government of “riding roughshod” over local opinion and claimed the county was “under attack” from the solar industry.
Mr Miliband has declared his intention to push ahead with onshore windfarms and solar farms across the country with the 600MW Cottam solar project in Lincolnshire being one of the latest to be given the green light, despite strong local objections.
The new project near Gissing came to light after RPC and Elmya sought permission for a new connection into the national grid in the area.
This appeared on the Transmission Entry Capacity (TEC) register – a list of existing and future energy projects.
A spokeswoman for the companies said: “RPC and Elmya Energy are exploring sites in the area, but not in Gissing, and no planning application has been submitted.
“We’ll be in touch with local communities to conduct consultation should exploration result in a planning application.”
The National Energy Systems Operator (NESO) said that while Labour’s plan to decarbonise the grid by the end of the decade is a “huge challenge” it is “achievable”.
But Labour will need to reform the planning system to allow the swift building of new pylons, wind farms and solar plants to hit the target, it said.
More than twice as much transmission network – pylons, overhead power cables and substations – needs to be built than in the previous decade, it added.