Solar farm project expected to be progressed

A £18.6m solar farm that a council wants to build on some of its agricultural land should continue, councillors will be told next week.

West Berkshire Council's Grazeley Solar Farm could produce enough electricity to power at least 5,500 homes, the authority said.

Planning permission has already been granted for the council-owned site at Bloomfield Hatch Farm, between Mortimer and Grazeley, and it expects to make a profit of about £400,000 annually over 30 years.

Senior councillors will be asked to progress the project at a meeting on Thursday, which would allow officers to organise procurement and connections to the grid.

The council has said a contractor is expected to run the farm for its first two years.

Following that, a new contract will be sought for its operation and maintenance, which is expected to cost about £200,000 a year.

The site could still be used for farmland after the solar farm has been removed, the council said. It is classified as low-grade land.

A plan to use the site for housing was shelved previously because of its proximity to the Atomic Weapons Establishment's (AWE) base in Burghfield.

"Grazeley Solar Farm is an important opportunity to make productive use of council-owned land, generate local renewable electricity and support our commitment to tackling the climate and ecological emergency," Stuart Gourley, the council's executive member for environment and highways, said.

"The updated work shows that, while there are risks to manage, the project continues to offer a strong strategic case and the potential to deliver long-term environmental and financial benefits for West Berkshire residents."