Orbital Retail Park to install 5,000 solar panels

The new panels are expected to produce 56% of the centre's electricity needs

Shopping centre bosses have been given the green light to cover its buildings with 5,000 solar panels.

Swindon Borough Council has approved the application from Orbital Retail Park Swindon Ltd.

The solar panels aim to provide a "commercially viable" option for tackling climate change.

According to the council, the equipment had been designed to "minimise the effect on the appearance of the building."

'Climate crisis'

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, tenants at the shopping park will buy the energy, with any surplus exported to the National Grid.

The application by Orbital Retail Park Ltd told planners: "Given the current climate crisis, it is crucial to consider the integration of renewable energies into local communities.

"Renewable energy technologies are clean sources energy that have a significantly decreased environmental impact, in comparison to conventional energy technologies.

"More specifically, in contrast to other sources of renewable energy, Solar PV provides a non-visually intrusive, commercially viable, solution to the issue we are facing."

The Asda supermarket and the library at the site are not owned by the company and are not part of the application.

However, according to the application, the supermarket already had a "moderate covering" of solar panels on the roof.

The report by the council giving permission states: "By virtue of the size and scale of the building, and the line of sight from surrounding vantage points, the equipment has been sited and designed in such a way so as to minimise the effect on the appearance of the building."