A CONSULTATION is set to be launched which will give residents the chance to have their say on plans to introduce a new solar farm to power nearly 10,000 homes.

A public consultation is being launched into proposals for a new solar farm at two sites near Braintree.

EDF Renewables UK is bringing forward the proposed Cressing Solar Farm on land close to the railway line between Black Notley and Tye Green, and at land adjacent to Lanham Wood to the north of Cressing.

The two sites, called Cressing West and Cressing East respectively, would be connected to one another by an underground cable which would also connect the solar farm to the national electricity grid at the Braintree Substation.

The proposed Cressing Solar Farm is claimed to have the potential to generate up to 49.9MW of electricity, enough to meet the needs of approximately 9,500 homes every year.

It is also claimed the solar farm could save approximately 21,500 tonnes of carbon emissions. 

Anyone who wants to find out more about the proposals can speak to the project team at two public exhibitions.

The first will be held at the Notleys Golf Club in White Notley on Thursday October 6 from 3.30pm.

The second is at St Barnabas Church Hall in Cressing on Saturday October 8 at 1pm.

The consultation information will also be available to view via www.edf-re.uk/cressing from Wednesday October 5.

This will include proposed site layouts and an online feedback form.

Once the consultation closes on October 31, EDF Renewables UK will consider the feedback that it receives before submitting planning applications for the sites to Braintree District Council in early 2023.

James Lyons from EDF Renewables UK said: “The launch of our pre-application consultation is an important milestone for the project and we’re looking forward to presenting our proposals at the public consultation events.

“We have met with some of our close neighbours already and would encourage anyone who is interested in the proposals to visit one of the exhibition events or to view the information on our website.”