Gridserve completes ‘game-changing’ solar farm in York

Gridserve has completed a “game-changing” subsidy-free solar farm in York that uses cutting-edge panels to spread production more evenly across the day.

The panels are bifacial, allowing lights to be absorbed through both sides, and are also mounted on horizontal pivots, enabling them to track the sun as it rises and sets. Both are firsts for a large-scale project in the UK.

The 34.7MW solar farm additionally features a 30MW battery system with a storage capacity of 30MWh. It is one of two similar projects to be built under contract with Warrington Borough Council. The other is being constructed in Hull and is due to be handed over early next year.

The combination of technologies will help maximise the value of their output by shifting it away from the usual noon peak for solar production when wholesale prices tend to be lower.

The solar farm will eventually help supply the first in a £1 billion network of 100 “electric forecourts” that Gridserve plans to build based on the model of combining solar generation, battery storage and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Gridserve chief executive Toddington Harper said: “Projects like this, which also require no government subsidy whatsoever, demonstrate that the UK can meet its net zero obligations well before 2050 and enable us to move the needle in delivering radical carbon reductions within the next 10-years.

“We’ve completely rethought the solar model to maximise value, and we’ve now demonstrated that we have what it takes to make projects like this a reality. To replicate this success, we are now looking to partner with additional landowners, developers, and to acquire project rights.”

Warrington Borough Council has now taken ownership of the solar farm, which along with the project at Hull, will be maintained and operated by Gridserve. Output from the York project will be sold on the open market, whilst the generation from the Hull project will be used to meet the council’s own needs.

Council leader Russ Bowden said: “The completion of this ground-breaking project is a huge milestone for the council. This investment strengthens our commitment to tackle the climate emergency, and will also help us secure our energy supply, give us control over our energy prices, and contribute to reducing fuel poverty.

“At the same time, the solar farm is an important part of our ‘invest to save’ programme, and we expect it to generate an operating surplus of millions of pounds that can be ploughed back into delivering vital council services.”