Solar farm plan that 'could power town' refused

The plan had been deferred from August's meeting to get more details on councillors' concerns

A plan for a solar farm that developers said could generate enough power for an Oxfordshire town has been rejected.

AMPYR Solar Europe applied to build the 30MW farm and battery energy storage system (BESS) on agricultural land off Witney Road in Brize Norton, near the Grade II* listed wedding venue Caswell House.

West Oxfordshire District Council was told the 114 acre (46 hectare) site could generate power for 12,000 homes a year, equivalent to about 80% to 100% of Witney's needs.

Some councillors said they worried a private water supply used by Caswell House, which is located about 550m (1,800ft) from the solar farm site, could be contaminated in the event of a fire in the BESS.

The council's Lowlands Area planning committee dismissed it earlier.

Nine councillors voted to reject it and three abstained. One councillor was opposed to the rejection.

The application was deferred from August's committee meeting to seek more information about the concerns over the possible water contamination.

The developer and the council's officers said they had worked to mitigate those ahead of the application being discussed by the committee.

The authority's officers had recommended that the project was given planning permission.