Over 1,000ac of proposed solar farms in Ireland have been refused planning permission.

The two large scale solar projects, located in Carlow and Kildare, were refused permission on multiple grounds, including impact on residents, biodiversity and farmland as well as safety concerns for its battery components.

Carlow

Developers Elgin Energy ESI Ltd applied for planning permission in late January to construct a solar farm and battery energy storage system (BESS) on 583ac of land in County Kildare. The proposed site is located on farmland approximately 1km from Kilcock, near Tirmoghan and Rathcoffey.

The project would be one of the largest in the country, with a planned capacity of 200 megawatts (MW) of solar power and a 200MWh BESS. Planning permission was sought for a 10-year period, with the solar farm intended to operate for 40 years once built.

The application received significant opposition, with nearly 100 submissions lodged—many of them objections.

Reasons for refusal

Kildare County Council cited seven reasons for refusing the application. Chief among them was the applicant’s failure to demonstrate that the proposed development is appropriate from a fire safety perspective.

Specifically, they did not provide sufficient details regarding on-site battery storage and associated fire safety measures, particularly with respect to environmental concerns.

The council also raised concerns about the use of productive agricultural land and the poor quality of the information submitted on several fronts: biodiversity, residential amenity, glint and glare, archaeological heritage, road safety, grid connection and decommissioning.

It concluded that the proposed development does not align with Objective ECO21 and Section 7.6 of the Kildare County Development Plan 2023–2029.

Carlow refusal

In Carlow, Ballyloo Solar Farm Ltd applied for planning permission in February 2024 to develop a 474ac solar farm. The proposed site is located approximately 5km south of Carlow town, just beyond the M9 motorway.

The development was planned predominantly on tillage land, spread across four land parcels within the townlands of Ballybar Upper, Ballyloo, Ballyryan, Garryhundon, and Linkardstown. The solar farm was intended to operate for a period of 40 years.

The application attracted a number of objections from the local community.

Refusal

Carlow County Council refused the application, stating that the proposed development would have a disproportionate and adverse impact on the rural landscape and visual character of the area.

It was considered out of scale with its surroundings and likely to diminish key features contributing to the landscape’s value, such as its agricultural use, traditional field patterns, and overall visual setting.

The Council also noted that the site lies within an area of high residential density, and the development would have an unacceptable impact on residential amenity.