Election means Sunnica solar farm decision on Cambridgeshire-Suffolk border delayed
A decision was meant to be made today
Last updated 20th Jun 2024
Campaigners fighting plans to build a massive solar farm on the Cambridgeshire-Suffolk border hope a delay will work in their favour.
The Government was due to decide today (June 20) whether or not the Sunnica Energy Farm can be built, but the upcoming general election has meant a decision's been postponed.
On its website, the Planning Inspectorate said "no development consent decisions will be taken during this period" and an update will be provided until after the election on July 4.
Catherine Judkins is chair of the Say no to Sunnica group:
"It's already been delayed several times and we were originally expecting it to be made in September last year; we don't know exactly yet who will be making that decision," she said.
"While we wait for a new decision date to be announced, we'll continue to engage with all parties.
"All political parties here have opposed the scheme and we just hope we'll get our rejection at some point in the future."
What does Sunnica want to achieve?
Sunnica want to build the solar farm across three different sites.
The plans include building solar photovoltaic panels across several fields and each site would be connected to each other by underground cables that link to the National Grid at Burwell substation.
Sunnica Limited says the project will power 172,000 homes and create 1,500 jobs during construction.
The company hopes the proposals would help the government's target of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
A spokesperson for Sunnica added: "We expect Sunnica to create a net gain in biodiversity.
"We have committed to establish and fund an Ecology Advisory Group that would oversee and monitor ecological matters relating to Sunnica Energy Farm during its operating life."
After a decision was pushed back from September to December last year, it was further delayed to March and then April this year.