AN ADDITIONAL £180,000 has been approved for Caerphilly County Borough Council’s solar farm project, which will be built near Penyrheol.
Cwm Ifor solar farm was given the go-ahead by the council’s cabinet in October last year, but planning permission is needed before it can proceed.
The 20 megawatt project is predicted to generate enough electricity to power 6,000 homes and have an operational lifespan of 35 years.
So far the council has allocated £483,000 to the project’s business case. Cabinet members agreed to increase this by £180,000 at a meeting on Wednesday April 19.
The extra funding is to cover an increase in costs, which the council said is due to the withdrawal of a company’s agreement – which has meant the business plan needs to be re-evaluated.
The re-evaluation of the business plan is estimated to cost £101,000. Additionally, £20,000 is allocated to legal costs and £59,000 is set aside for “unforeseen” costs in the planning process, such as if a planning inquiry was required.
At the cabinet meeting, council deputy leader Jamie Pritchard said the project had the possibility to be the largest public authority-owned solar farm.
This is the first time the council has made moves to invest in the energy sector. It hopes the solar farm will support decarbonisation of the local electricity system, as well as provide an opportunity to generate an additional income.
The total cost is estimated to be between £12 million and £16 million.
Council leader Sean Morgan said: “I don’t think our future generations would thank us if we didn’t support this.”
Anna Lewis, transformation project officer at the council, said the consultation had received more positive comments than negative.
No decision has been made as to whether the council will develop the solar farm or sell the project on.
The project has been classified as a “development of national significance”- meaning the Welsh Government will make the final decision on the application.
As part of this, Planning and Environment Decisions Wales (PEDW) will scrutinise the visual impact of the solar farm.
The council has confirmed that it has submitted a Development of National Significant (DNS) application, which is specifically for large infrastructure projects.
