The Solar Building Company (SBC) and Mere Environmental have revealed plans to install a 49MW solar farm in Anglesey.
The companies are seeking planning permission for the scheme which would see the development split across four separate areas of land located around Llanfihangel yn Nhowyn.
SBC expects to start construction on the site in 2016, meaning that the developers will have to use the unproven contracts for difference (CfD) support mechanism instead of the RO scheme which is set to end in April 2015 for solar projects over 5MW.
Speaking to Solar Power Portal, James Steynor, managing director of SBC explained that although the CfD budget was low, it was “not a disaster”. However, he pointed out that turbulent policy “destabilises the sector and costs jobs”.
The 49MW project represents an investment of around £55 million and the developer estimates that the project will help mitigate the emission of around half a million tonnes of CO2 over the plant’s lifetime whilst generating enough electricity to supply 12,000 homes a year.
Owing to the size of the proposed solar farm, SBC stress that the company is working hard on minimising visual impact and consulting fully with the local community. Steynor said: “The development, being split over four areas, will have very limited visual impact and will be completely silent. Solar is perhaps the most accepted renewable and is certainly unobtrusive unlike, for example, wind farms.”
The company will be holding a public consultation on the proposed solar farm over the next four weeks which it will use to inform its planning application.