Quintas Cleantech is a small developer focused on building a small number of good quality, ground mounted solar farms across the UK. It is their intention to remain involved in both the management and ownership of the solar farms throughout the full lifecycle. Their sister company, Quintas Energy is a well-known asset management service provider, responsible for managing over 200 UK solar farms on behalf of its clients.
Quintas Cleantech are experts in understanding what it takes to develop, construct and manage a successful solar farm. This means they place the highest emphasis on good implementation and management, close cooperation with the landowner, local receptors and the local planning authority as well as any other local stakeholders.
Quintas Cleantech’s approach enables them to focus on developing and delivering a site that can be properly maintained during its operational phase, whilst providing renewable, sustainable energy infrastructure. Notwithstanding recent planning policy changes, Quintas has its own policy to ensure their sites deliver biodiversity net gain, and always seek to maintain existing hedgerows, trees and vegetation where possible.
In 2024, the Government created GB Energy as a way of empowering local communities to generate, manage and benefit from their own renewable energy sources.
This project represents an exciting opportunity for the surrounding community to share in the ownership of a local solar farm. At Quintas we are partnering with a community energy group to make shared ownership of local renewable energy a reality. We will be seeking close collaboration with partner organisations and will be discussing other direct benefits with the local community and councils.
We are currently working with Community Energy Pathways who support a network of more than 50 community energy groups across England. Based in Lewes, East Sussex, they are highly regarded in the sector and have been instrumental in pushing the boundaries of community energy solutions and building capacity within the sector since 2013.
The shared ownership of renewable energy projects in the UK allows communities and commercial businesses to jointly benefit from renewable energy developments, such as wind and solar farms.
While this has been encouraged by the Scottish Government with regard to wind farms for many years, its potential has only recently started to be realised in England’s solar sector.
Our innovative Shared Ownership model aims to enable the local community to invest in and own up to 10% of the solar farm; contributing to decisions about the project and benefiting directly from its performance. Shared Ownership and community energy projects empower people living in the area to take control of their energy futures and help keep more of the financial benefits of projects like this within the community. This assists them in taking tangible action to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change.
Clean renewable power generation is front-and-centre of the UK’s strategy to reach net zero by 2050, with the Government setting us a target for all electricity to come from 100% zero-carbon generation by 2030. As part of this mission, they need to triple the country’s solar capacity.
Sheerhatch Solar is situated on land approximately 600m south of Willington and 300m east of Cople on land adjacent to Northill Road. The site extends to approximately 186 hectares, although the development area itself will cover a smaller portion of the site.
The site has been selected following a site selection process taking into account factors such as environmental constraints, topography, engineering feasibility and proximity to a grid connection.
The proposals comprise a solar array with associated infrastructure, which will have a capacity of approximately 49.9MW (enough to power c.15,000 homes per year) and a BESS facility capable of storing approximately 15MW of energy to help balance the grid at peak times.
It also includes:
The solar panels will be mounted onto arrays, which will be piled into the ground resulting in only minimal groundworks.
We are liaising with the Forest of Marston Vale Trust to deliver significant tree and hedgerow planting across the site.
Sheerhatch Solar will connect to the grid. The point of connection is to the north of the site in Willington.
We are seeking temporary planning permission for a 40-year period. Once the project’s lifespan has concluded, all equipment will be removed, and the site, which is fully reversible, will be returned to its current state as greenfield land.
The need for renewable energy development across the UK is prominent within legislation, including ambitious targets proposed to reach net zero emissions by 2050 – renewable energy development including solar will play a key part in achieving this. The new Labour Government intend to power the UK on clean power by 2030. To help deliver the clean power mission, the new UK Government has stated that they will work with the private sector to triple solar power by 2030.
Solar farms are a simple and established technology providing a source of safe and clean energy which produce zero emissions when in operation. Solar development is temporary as the panels can be removed at the end of their lifetime but also allows the agricultural use of the land to continue through grazing. Solar energy is not only sustainable, but also renewable, meaning that we will never run out of it.
The project has a number of economic and environmental benefits, including improvements to support biodiversity, landscaping which will provide visual screening to the site as well a community benefit fund to support investment in the local area.
As part of our planning application, we will agree a Construction Traffic Management Plan (CTMP) with Bedford Borough Council. This document will set out traffic management procedures for the duration of the construction period, including strict guidelines for contractors to ensure that disruption to local residents is kept to a minimum.
The CTMP will also set out the number and type of construction vehicles expected throughout the construction period, as well as the designated construction routes.
The project will be integrated into the local landscape with a series of targeted planting and nature enhancements to screen the development from the local road network and assimilate it sensitively into the local landscape. Appropriate stand off buffers will also be incorporated.
We expect that construction will take approximately 9 months to complete. We will produce a CTMP which will include details on the number of vehicles needed for construction and the construction routes that will be used to access the site.
It is not envisaged at this stage that there will be any requirement to temporarily divert or close the existing Public Right of Way that runs through the centre of the site. The scheme has been designed so as to incorporate stand off buffers from the on-site and adjacent public rights of way. An appropriate landscaping scheme will be developed.
As part of the suite of surveys and reports undertaken in support of a planning application, a heritage study will be compiled which will identify the likelihood of there being any archaeological interest below ground on the site. The findings of that report will be discussed with the Council’s archaeologist. Should it be deemed necessary, a geophysical survey and/or trial trenching will be conducted to determine whether there is anything of interest which needs to be further explored. If anything of interest is found, processes will be in place to ensure they are recorded and analysed.
The proposals will deliver at least a 10% Biodiversity Net Gain, in accordance with the provisions of the Environment Act (2021). Exact biodiversity enhancements are still to be determined but may include wildflower meadows, tree and hedgerow planting and enhancements of grasslands.
The proposals will deliver at least a 10% Biodiversity Net Gain, in accordance with the provisions of the Environment Act (2021). Exact Biodiversity enhancements are still to be determined but may include wild flower meadows, tree and hedgerow planting and enhancements of grasslands to support the creation of new habitats. Ecological surveys are being undertaken in support of a future planning application and these will identify any species and or habitats on site which need further surveying or specific protections. As a result, our proposals will include a series of ecological enhancements.
We are liaising with the Forest of Marston Vale Trust to deliver significant tree and hedgerow planting across the site.
We will hold a public consultation on our draft proposals in March 2025. The consultation will include an in-person consultation event, where the community and interested parties will have the opportunity to view planning documents, including plans and maps. Attendees will also be able provide feedback and discuss the plans directly with members of the Sheerhatch Solar project team.
In accordance with the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act (1990), the application will be submitted to Bedford Borough Council as the Local Planning Authority. It will then be for the Planning Committee to decide whether the proposals will receive planning consent.
We are hoping for a decision from Bedford Borough Council in late 2025.
Quintas is committed to holding an accessible and transparent consultation, which reaches a wide audience of local residents. You can get in touch with us in a number of ways, including: