The Crown Estate has partnered with Portland stone provider, Albion Stone to submit a planning application for a solar farm on a disused quarry site.
The planning application is seeking approval to construct a 3MW solar farm across 7.4 hectares of land at a Quarry site in Easton on the Isle of Portland, Dorset.
Malcolm Burns, portfolio manager for The Crown Estate, said: ‘’The site is particularly well suited for a solar park. It brings back into productive use spent quarry land while its landscape means that most of the solar park will not be visible from neighbouring homes. Our application is for a 25-year period following which the land would be restored.’’
If the site is given the go-ahead it would generate enough electricity to power Albion Stone’s masonry factory as well as 400 local homes.
The planning decision is expected to be made in spring, with the project potentially connected to the grid early 2016.
The move builds on a previous solar venture between the Crown Estate and Albion Stone which saw the installation of a 164.5kWp rooftop array on a stone factory on the Isle of Portland in Dorset.