Sunnica Energy Farm

A solar farm of 600MW with battery energy storage systems, consented by the UK government, covering 1,000 hectares of land in West Suffolk and East Cambridgeshire.

Sunnica Energy Farm is a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) developed by Sunnica Ltd, to construct a Solar Farm comprised of photovoltaic (PV) panel arrays and Battery Energy Storage System (BESS).

As of 12 July 2024, the scheme has been granted consent by the Secretary of State.

The scheme is proposed to be located across three sites in Suffolk and East Cambridgeshire connecting to the National Grid substation in Burwell.

Further information can be found on the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) and Applicant's (Sunnica Ltd) websites. 

Current stage within the NSIP Process

The Planning Act 2008 sets out seven stages for NSIPs. The project has progressed through these as seen below.

  1. Occurring until November 2021, Sunnica Energy Farm produced a Screening, Scoping, Non-Statutory Consultation, Statement of Community Consultation, and Statutory Consultation.

    A Non-statutory Consultation was undertaken during June and July 2019. 

    A Statutory Consultation was undertaken between 22 September and 18 December 2020. 

  2. The application for Development Consent was submitted on 18 November 2021. The Planning Inspectorate accepted the application for Examination on 16 December 2021. 

    The Council was approached by the Planning Inspectorate in regard to the Adequacy of Consultation, prior to acceptance. 

  3. Occurring between 17 December 2021 and 27 September 2022, all interested parties were requested to submit Relevant Representations. 

    An additional non-statutory consultation was undertaken between 6 June and 6 July 2022, concerning changes to the grid connection at Burwell substation. 

  4. Following the close of the Preliminary Meeting, the Planning Inspectorate examined the proposals for a period of 6 months. The Examination opened on 28 September 2022 and closed on 28 March 2023.

    The Councils submitted a Joint Local Impact Report at Deadline 1 and various other documents which can be found on the Planning Inspectorate project webpage, including the Joint Comments at the Close of Examination at Deadline 11 summarising the position of the Councils. 

  5. Following the close of the Examination, the Examining Authority submitted their recommendation to the Secretary of State on 28 June 2023. 

  6. The Secretary of State granted consent for the project on 12 July 2024. 

  7. Suffolk County Council's process for the Discharge of Requirements, which is applied uniformly for all NSIPs across Suffolk - NSIP Discharge of Requirements Frequently Asked Questions - Suffolk County Council.

    The Council is yet to receive any Discharge of Requirements. 

Supporting Documents

During the pre-application and examination phases, Suffolk County Council submitted representations in response to the proposals.

Following consent of the project by the Secretary of State at the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero, Suffolk County Council has written to the promoter regarding the use of forced labour in the solar supply chain.

Contact Sunnica Ltd

Find out more about the proposals on Sunnica Ltd's Sunnica Energy Farm project website.