Danish energy firm Ørsted intends to develop a proposed 740MW solar farm with associated battery storage as its first solar project in the UK.
The project, known as One Earth Solar Farm will primarily be located in Nottinghamshire near the border of Lincolnshire and is being co-developed with PS Renewables.
Ørsted said it intends to submit a development consent order for the project in 2025 and expects the One Earth Solar Farm to achieve commercial operation in 2030. Ørsted is taking a phased ownership in the project with the achievement of key milestones, the energy firm added.
Once operational, the solar farm will generate enough clean, renewable electricity to power up to 200,000 homes, making it one of the largest solar farms in the country.
Ørsted, which currently has over 5.7GW of onshore renewables in operation, under construction, or consented across the US and Europe, said the One Earth Solar Farm project will contribute to the firm’s global ambition of reaching 17.5GW of onshore capacity by 2030.
Ørsted already operates 420MW of onshore wind in the UK and Ireland. The company recently announced its first solar farm in Ireland at Ballinrea near Carrigaline in Cork and the acquisition of the 160MW Garreenleen project earlier this year, bringing Ireland’s solar pipeline to a total in excess of 600MW.
Kieran White, SVP of onshore in Europe at Ørsted, said: “With a strong Irish onshore portfolio already in place, we are delighted to begin our journey in the UK solar market with PS Renewables, who have been successfully delivering large-scale solar projects for more than a decade.”
Duncan Clark, SVP and head of UK and Ireland at Ørsted said: “Ørsted is committed to investing in a variety of renewable energy sources to ensure reliability and independence of supply.
“We welcome the UK government’s ambition to install 70GW of solar capacity by 2035 and look forward to working with the government’s new Solar Taskforce and stakeholders from across the industry to maximise the benefits that solar energy offers to the nation.”
Matt Hazell, co-owner of PS Renewables, said: “The One Earth Solar Farm stands to make an important contribution to the national decarbonisation effort. Our expertise in solar energy and Ørsted’s renewables track record make this a compelling project.”
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