A SOLAR farm company is appealing a decision by Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC) to refuse its application for a project in a village near Andover.

Novus Renewable Services Ltd has expressed its disappointment after the council decided to refuse its proposal for the 22.5MW solar farm project at Lains Farm in Cholderton Road, Quarley.

It was thrown out in a planning committee meeting on Thursday, September 21, due to concerns raised by the Civil Aviation Authority's (CAA) airfield advisory team regarding potential glare affecting operations at Thruxton Aerodrome.

Thruxton Aerodrome is a small, unlicensed general aviation aerodrome primarily used for flight training.

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A spokesperson for Novus said: “We are disappointed that Test Valley Borough Council has refused our application for what is a widely supported renewable energy project — one which would provide the equivalent energy needs for 5,467 local homes as well as wider local benefits.

“We undertook a thorough assessment of the potential impacts on the aerodrome, and have actively engaged with the aerodrome, its representatives, the community and the Civil Aviation Authority throughout the process. We remain certain that our well-designed proposal is safe and are committed in taking this project forwards to contribute towards both local and national climate change commitments.

“Therefore, we will be submitting an appeal in the next few weeks whilst maintaining the dialogue with the council and aerodrome and aim to minimise the time and resources required.”

In the planning committee meeting, an airfield advisory team officer informed the borough councillors that there had been no recorded incidents or complaints of glare from pilots at other solar farm locations near aerodromes across the UK.

However, the officer argued that the solar farm's presence would still pose an unacceptable risk to aviation operations at Thruxton Aerodrome.

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The proposed site, located in the countryside northeast of Quarley, is adjacent to the A303 dual carriageway and already contains an existing solar farm that partially implements planning permission granted in 2015, with the north portion of the site yet to be developed.

While debating on the proposal, Cllr Jim Neal, who has 39 years of flying experience, said he had never experienced significant glare during his career, suggesting that if such issues were present, there would have already been numerous complaints.

Reluctantly voting to reject the proposal, Cllr Neal said a planning inspector might allow the plans if the applicant appeals the decision.