Westmorland and Furness Council has awarded a £95,000 contract to a consultancy based in Wales to design and prepare the planning application for a proposed 2MW solar farm at Penrith on council-owned land at Redhills.
The contract has been awarded by Westmorland and Furness Council to Lighthouse Development Consulting Limited, based in Penarth, South Wales, to act as planning and design consultant for the scheme on land next to Rheged and the A66.
The contract forms part of the council's renewable energy programme. The council says the project "forms part of the Council's Renewables Generation Programme, supporting delivery of the Carbon Management Strategy 2024-2029 and the Council's objective to achieve net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2037."
The Redhills development would become the council's second solar farm following the completion of its 2MW Sandscale Park solar farm on the edge of Barrow, which began operating in 2024.
That project cost the council £2.781 million to build, funded through £1.70 million of capital receipts and £1.081 million of borrowing.
The business case for the Sandscale Park solar farm forecast gross annual revenue of up to £400,000. However, council figures show the site generated around £200,000 to £210,000 in gross income during the last 12 months.
The council has also disclosed that, during negotiations with energy suppliers, it was advised that its decision to retain the site's Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGO) certificates made the electricity generated less attractive or riskier to potential buyers of the electricity generated by the council owned solar farm.
The council's 2MW Sandscale Park solar farm comprises around 3,700 solar panels. That the council says it is expected to contribute to a savings of approximately 507 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent each year while generating enough electricity to power around 730 homes annually.
Councillor Peter Thornton, then Cabinet Member for Highways, Assets and ICT, said:
"Sandscale Park solar farm is an example of us using our assets in an innovative way to meet a serious challenge. The rise in energy costs is affecting us all, and by establishing this site we're now able to generate our own energy and ensure security for the future, which can only be a positive thing."
The proposed 2MW Penrith solar farm was the subject of a screening application in 2023, with no further public reports or council decisions on the project since then. The award of the £95,000 contract now moves the project into the design and planning stage ahead of the submission of a full planning application that the council will determine itself as the local planning authority.
If approved, the 2MW solar farm, matching the council's Sandscale Park solar farm in scale and expected generation, will be built on council-owned land at Redhills, next to Rheged and on the north-eastern boundary of the Lake District National Park.
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