EDF Renewables has opened its consultation on updated proposals for the Rosefield Solar Farm project, which will also include battery storage and is classified as a Nationally Important Infrastructure Project (NSIP).
The project, located between Buckinghamshire and Aylesbury, is co-owned by EDF Renewables and PS Renewables, a UK-based renewable energy development and construction company.
The update comes after a consultation in September 2023. It includes changes such as a reduction of almost 40% of the proposed area for solar panels, a fivefold increase in the area set aside for nature and greater compensation from nearby homes.
EDF Renewables UK’s director of solar, storage and private wire Matthew Boulton said: “We are grateful to everyone who shared their views with us last year and we will continue to listen hard to the feedback we receive from people on our proposals for Rosefield . I encourage everyone to contact us, meet us and share their views during the consultation.”
The consultation will run for eight weeks from September 18, and the feedback EDF receives will inform the final proposals submitted in the Development Consent Application (DCO). Apart from its classification as NSIP, which puts the development’s capacity at more than 50 MW, EDF has not publicly clarified its planned generation capacity.
Solar Power Portal requested clarification and was told that as proposals are still being developed, capacity cannot be confirmed at this stage. It will depend on the final design of the development, which will be based on feedback from consultations, in addition to ongoing environmental assessments and engineering work.
That said, the company did share that it has a grid connection agreement with National Grid at the East Claydon Substation, which will allow us to export up to 500MW of electricity to the grid. There would also be capacity to import power from the network.
EDF Renewables NSIP successes
In June last year, EDF Renewables was awarded a DCO for another NSIP solar project, Longfield Solar Farm, in Essex. It is the company’s first solar project of more than 50 MW to be developed in the UK and was also delivered in partnership with PS Renewables. Construction is expected to start next year.
The solar PV power plant was awarded a 299 MW contract in the sixth auction round (AR6) under the UK government’s Contracts for Difference programme. The total generation capacity is 400 MW and it is the first solar development with a capacity of more than 50 MW to secure a CfD.
AR6 saw great success for the solar industry, with a total of 93 ground-based solar projects and a combined capacity of 3.3 GW. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband hailed the success of AR6, saying: “This auction has delivered a record number of solar projects that strengthen our mission for a solar revolution.”
According to Cornwall Insight, solar’s CfD success stems from a strong pipeline of assets in many UK regions and its competitive advantage over onshore wind.
