Published on
14 December 2023
Progress on council's first solar farm
The solar farm could generate enough green renewable energy to power thousands of homes and businesses
Plans for Wokingham Borough Council’s first solar farm near Barkham are looking bright, following an official grid connection offer from Scottish and Southern Electric Networks (SSEN).
The offer confirms the farm could start feeding power into the grid by August 2026, more than a decade earlier than the 2037 the council was advised of in March this year. This is a significant and positive step forward in delivering the project.
The solar farm, once up and running, could generate enough green renewable energy to power thousands of homes and businesses. In addition to supporting the carbon reduction targets in the Council’s Climate Emergency Action Plan (CEAP), the project will also help raise income by selling power generated into the grid.
Positive news
“This is very positive news. Our legal team are currently reviewing the offer and we’re hopeful we will be able to finalise the agreement with SSEN soon.” Said Stephen Conway, Leader of the Council. “This is an important project for the council as, not only will the new solar farm help us with our ambition to make Wokingham a greener and more sustainable borough, but it will also help generate a profit that we can use to fund services and projects which benefit people living across the borough.
“We’re incredibly lucky to be in a place where we can consider moving this scheme forward. It’s a real testament to the work which has been done to build a strong working relationship with SSEN and National Grid, as well as their confidence in us to actually deliver the new solar farm.”
Powering ahead
Since receiving the verbal confirmation from SSEN, the council and their contractors, Bouygues Energies and Services, have been working closely to progress the project, making sure everything is in place to move ahead once an agreement has been reached with SSEN.
A series of pre-construction surveys and assessments have started on site, including topographical surveys and archaeological investigations, which will take place over the coming months.
Work has started to produce detailed designs for the site, which show the layout of solar panels, tree planting, landscaping and the new greenway route which is aimed at better connecting Arborfield, Barkham and Finchampstead to the existing network of public rights of way to the north.
An update on the project and agreement with SSEN was provided for discussion at the council’s Climate Emergency Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Monday 11 December.
