its the way the industry is structured. The developer only finds and builds the farm then sells this on to a long term investor, generally with a maintenance contractOut of interest why do these solar firms not buy the land only rent it? At the rents suggested it would more than cover the mortgage over 25 years?
Not quite sure about the long term investor side of things. The solar park with us has had 3 owners in 5 years. I've lost track of the number of different "finance houses" that have actually put up the capital for it all. They always seem to be re financing - I suppose chasing additional margin on cheaper / different sources of funding. It would be a whole lot more complicated if they owned the land rather than leased. The other point to think about , really its a case of pass the toxic parcel..... which company gets left with the clear up and disposal costs. The cynic in me expects in the latter years the business to go pop leaving the land owner to foot the bill.....
I'm getting quite a few letters at the minute asking for me to sign a grid mandate to allow a third party to speak to the DNO about a connection. They say it's not an agreement to work with them and doesn't tie me to anything. But I'm inherently sceptical.
Talking about £850/acre, but subject to grid. They say initially feasibility study is done entirely at their own cost.
Do say they need 25MW minimum project. Is there any disadvantage to letting them speak to DNO on my behalf, as it might be something we would be interested in, in the future. But I don't want to be trapped or have a commitment.
Today without tariffs things are very different indeed. I’m not sure it’s worth it to be honest.
I think that council scheme you are talking about is actually in desperate trouble. The people who set it up had no knowledge of the energy market and it is wasting money like water in a sieve.It all hinges on where the elec is sold, how it is sold, a lot of these sub free sites that are just occurring on line mostly have PPA deals with industry, local Gov, Councils etc. It's actually very interesting seeing what deals they put together. There is one quite forward thinking Council up North that has got into this in quite a big way, cost savings on their elec bill is huge, hence it stacks up for them to get involved. Others seem to be following.
sorry , that is not the ones I was thinking of.Warrington, think they have 2 farms now, recently completed York one and another in Hull.
What were the main issues?View attachment 881465
This is ours 28 acres owned by LightsourceBP. One of the last small projects. Plenty of issues and things we wish were sorted at the time.
The main issue is the company owning the solar are not he same as the main contractor - these people used a company and they did everything on the cheap. Fencing not completed to our standards, dreadfully dug drainage ditches, Didnt agree access coded gate. Gates between fields not installed. Reinstatement not great. Hedgeplanting poor and not maintained (it is being actioned now). Rubbish and plastic left in ground.What were the main issues?
One of the issues is the size of the field and too big for a flock of sheep - obv you cant split them. Gathering sheep is not easy a lot of banging heads! Maintaining the grounds is also not easy and the grass isnt the best - it needs a fresh lay in some.
Its a bit of a change in lifestyle to have contractors turning up - things like access when youve just blocked off the yard when managing the cows. There are advantages of having people around as in stock control (they usually report a sick sheep) plus the advantage of security.
On the other hand you will own a solar park, which with a bit of maintenance will still be generating electricity. I can't see that extending the planning will be difficult. Or it is brown field development. Or you might be able to extend the lease. In many of our cases it will be the kids problem anyway!!Not quite sure about the long term investor side of things. The solar park with us has had 3 owners in 5 years. I've lost track of the number of different "finance houses" that have actually put up the capital for it all. They always seem to be re financing - I suppose chasing additional margin on cheaper / different sources of funding. It would be a whole lot more complicated if they owned the land rather than leased. The other point to think about , really its a case of pass the toxic parcel..... which company gets left with the clear up and disposal costs. The cynic in me expects in the latter years the business to go pop leaving the land owner to foot the bill.....