Council cites numerous concerns as it formally objects to north Suffolk solar farm plans

The 250-megawatt solar farm and battery energy storage system will be spread out over 1,500 acres at multiple sites in the parishes of Occold, Eye, Brome and Oakley, Stuston, Thrandeston, Mellis, Burgate, Thornham Parva, Gislingham and Yaxley.

The report outlines many concerns, including:

• Numerous parcels of Grade 2 agricultural land to be lost
• Significant impacts on multiple communties and sensitive habitats and landscapes, such as Mellis Common
• Numerous sites of high archaeological sensitivity
• Cable corridors causing irreversible damage

Furthermore, the county council strongly recommends that EcoPower publishes an interim design report by the end of June 2025. This would provide refined plans in light of further assessment work to be conducted, and the responses to this non-statutory consultation.

This would go some way to providing reassurance and clarity regarding the proposals to the local community. It will also allow all concerned to review more details, in timely fashion, ahead of the statutory consultation expected later this year.

Councillor Richard Rout, Suffolk County Council’s Cabinet Member for Devolution, Local Government Reform and NSIPs, said:

“My primary concern remains for the many local communities, who are already feeling the direct impact of the proposals of this scheme – which hasn’t even been given approval, let alone been built. Frankly, there are serious questions about whether it should ever have seen the light of day.

“It seems that the aim of this project is for it to be delivered as fast as possible, encouraged by the government’s unrealistic obsession to decarbonise the grid by 2030.”

Suffolk County Council recently expressed its concerns in response to government proposals concerning reforms to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

One of the proposals is to remove the duty on project promoters to consult and engage with communities before a project is presented to the Planning Inspectorate. Further, the duty to have regard to any comments on voluntary consultations undertaken by a promoter is also proposed to be removed.

Councillor Richard Rout continues:

“In many ways, this EcoPower proposal can be a litmus test for how well communities are, or I fear aren’t, engaged with.

“Even before government’s latest plans to eliminate public engagement, this solar farm project was going to be running on the least amount of consultation possible.

“It is in EcoPower’s gift to work with local authorities, communities and organisation, beyond what is demanded of them by the current planning process. However, as a council our firm objection to projects that remove any of Suffolk’s best quality agricultural from food production, remains steadfast.”

EcoPower anticipates running its statutory consultation in Autumn 2025.