A LEADING renewable energy firm has revealed a plan to develop a 12.5-hectare solar farm less than a mile from a market town.

It is thought the 5MWp proposal at Bedale Wood Farm, west of Bedale, would be capable of powering about 1,300 homes and would decrease the likelihood of power cuts in the area.

The scheme, which would be a temporary 25-year development, is the third large-scale solar project to be unveiled in Hambleton District this year, following schemes in Ainderby Steeple, near Northallerton and Sessay, near Thirsk.

Improvements in photovoltaic technology have meant more of the sun’s rays can be captured further north, and coupled with lower land rents, the availability of grid connections and scarcity of suitable sites elsewhere, solar farm developers are increasingly looking at sites in North Yorkshire.

While many councillors are keen to approve renewable energy projects to meet the rising demand for electricity, the Government has stated schemes that trigger significant local opposition due to their visibility should be rejected.

Earlier this month, the Ainderby Steeple scheme, involving a 13-hectare solar farm featuring 18,000 panels and capable of generating 5.9Mw of electricity at peak times, was approved by Hambleton District Council.

However, at the same planning meeting, councillors rejected another energy scheme at an adjacent site involving 6,000 individual solar panels as it was just 100m away from the nearest house in the village.

Developer Livos Energy said the Bedale Wood Farm scheme would be in partnership with a farmer and sited on a field used for pasture and feature ground-mounted panels, screened by woodland to the north and south.

A spokesman for the firm said the solar farm would not be visible from the nearest settlements, the small villages of Burrill and Cowling, which have a total of about 50 houses, due to being on low-lying land.

He said the development would not harm the character of the landscape and would be removed after 25 years.

He added: "Care has been taken in selecting the site to make use of the existing topography and to minimise potential landscape impacts as far as possible."

Bedale councillor Carl Les said while he would not want to lose agricultural land, such schemes were often built to enabled sheep to continue to graze beneath the panels.

He said: "I don't have a problem with these schemes as long as they are screened and in sympathetic locations."