Solar farm proposed to support Blackpool Airport
Initial plan for a 20MVA solar farm to enable the airport to generate its own renewable energy submitted to Fylde Council.
An ambitious new plan to generate green energy in Blackpool has been submitted to the local council. The proposed solar farm would be located just south of Blackpool Airport’s main runway, providing energy to the airport and to the planned Silicon Sands high-performance data centre campus, to be built north of the current airfield.
Image showing proposed solar farm at Blackpool Airport, courtesy of Blackpool Council
The aim is to help the airport reduce its energy bills and carbon footprint, while enabling Blackpool Council to reduce overall net electricity consumption by as much as 75%. What’s more, the farm would help equip the airport to support next-generation sustainable hybrid or electric battery-operated aircraft.
Indeed, the solar farm proposal aims to make more efficient use of land at Blackpool Airport by closing the small 13/31 crosswind runway which currently costs more to maintain that it generates in revenue from flights.
The proposal is at the first stage of the planning process, which will determine whether an Environmental Impact Assessment is needed. Local residents will also be invited to see the proposals in more detail and share their views.
Planning support for the solar farm proposal has been provided by enterprise zone consultants Cassidy + Ashton, with feasibility studies from Horizon Power and Energy.
If approved by Fylde Council, the solar farm could be operation by the end of the decade, helping to meet 2030 targets on renewable energy. (Since 2017, the airport has been wholly owned by Blackpool Council but for planning purposes the land on which it sits is within Fylde Council’s boundary.)
Cllr Jane Hugo, Cabinet Member for Climate Change at Blackpool Council, says: ‘Tackling the climate emergency is a major priority for Blackpool. The council and its companies own a significant number of buildings and homes, as well as an airport, all of which are large energy consumers. These solar farm proposals would allow us to generate our own green energy, reducing our carbon emissions and energy bills considerably. It will also help support our plans to grow the local economy, by providing green energy to data centres and businesses at Silicon Sands, as well as helping the airport to explore the next generation of sustainable aviation.’
Steve Peters, Managing Director of Blackpool Airport, adds: ‘This is an opportunity for the airport to make best use of the land by repurposing it so that it creates a revenue stream for the airport while reducing our energy bills and supporting our ten-year plan to become more financially sustainable.
‘Installing solar farms at airports is increasingly common, with operational farms at Gatwick, Belfast, Southend, Newquay and plans for more at Edinburgh, Glasgow and other airports in the UK and across the world. Runway 28/10 at 1,800 metres long provides good capability for a busy airport which handles around 40,000 flight movements per year, and this move would support our wider plans to improve the airport even further in the coming years.’
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