Plans for huge £6m solar park in Aylesbury Vale town get green light

Bucks Council has approved a planning application by Wessex Solar Energy Ltd for a major solar panel installation on more than 23 hectares of land located to the east of Manor Farm on Bourton Road in Buckingham.

Plans detail the installation of the new “Bourton Solar Park”, generating up to 12MW electricity and comprising up to 38,000 photovoltaic (PV) panels.

It represents a total investment of £6 million, “a proportion of which will be spent in the local area”, the report reveals.

There will also be up to 12 inverter/transformer cabins, a single control building and a communications tower.

Hardstanding areas will be created at the existing entrance gateway.

The site will also employ up to 50 new part-time staff, a report states.

The site is currently agricultural land used for grazing, it adds.

Construction of the solar park is expected to take approximately four months.

The solar park will have an operational lifetime of at least 40 years, after which it would be decommissioned and all above ground aspects of the development removed from site.

Wessex Solar Energy is currently considering a portfolio of sites across England and South Wales for solar parks, and it thinks the Bourton Road site is a “good candidate”.

“Wessex Solar Energy is a company involved with the development of solar park projects in the United Kingdom,” a report states.

“The company is looking at a portfolio of sites across England and South Wales for development of solar park projects and has identified the proposed site as being a good candidate to house a solar park.”

It adds: “The aim of the project is to generate clean renewable electricity in a sustainable manner and in so doing, help the UK meet its targets for the uptake of renewable energy.

“The project will have a relatively low profile, unlike other forms of renewable energy generation such as wind turbines that are generally prominent over many miles.”

> Solar farms are large scale applications of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, providing a source of safe, locally produced renewable energy for many years after construction. The land used for a solar farm creates a safe place where nature and wildlife can flourish.