Welcome to the

Flaxlands Solar Farm Website

Project Introduction

Ampyr Solar Europe (ASE) is developing a proposal for an 87ha solar farm with 49MW of Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) capacity north of Royal Wootton Bassett and west of the village of Hook in Wiltshire.

Who is the developer?

This project is being developed by Ampyr Solar Europe, a major new European solar enterprise. Ampyr Solar Europe was created in 2021 through the merger of NaGa Solar with the existing Ampyr Energy UK joint venture between AGP Group and Hartree Partners. Ampyr Solar Europe operates across Germany, UK and the Netherlands, with a 7+ GW (Gigawatt) solar portfolio in development.

We anticipate the solar farm to supply the electricity needs of approximately 21,000 homes a year, a significant proportion of households.

The clean energy generated will save on average approximately 17,900 tonnes of CO2 per year, which adds up to 716,000 tonnes of CO2 over the next 40 years or the equivalent of 835,951 acres of forest.

Biodiversity is particularly important to us and we are exploring opportunities for ecological enhancements and habitat creation by incorporating large areas designated for biodiversity net gain.

Community consultation

The public consultation on our proposals has now closed, and we are carefully considering all the feedback we received as we finalise our proposal for the project.

We will provide an update to the community and stakeholders before submitting our planning application in the coming months. A Statement of Community Involvement detailing how the consultation has been carried out and how feedback to the consultation has been considered will also be submitted as part of our planning application.

Why do we need the solar farm?

Climate change is already resulting in an increase in global temperatures and weather patterns affecting societies and ecosystems in the UK and around the world.

To combat climate change, the UK has set the ambitious target of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. To do this, the UK will shut all coal-fired power stations by 2025 and needs to transition to zero and low carbon sources of power. This means the amount of energy generated from renewable sources, such as solar, needs to increase. Flaxlands Solar Farm will play an important regional and national part in this transition to renewable energy generation.

Currently the UK’s electricity price is among the highest in Europe. The cause of this can be attributed to the lack of ‘home-grown’ energy and our susceptibility to outside influences on our energy prices. To combat this, the UK needs to find ways to increase its energy security, and renewable and clean energy generating power stations, such as solar and wind, play a vital part in achieving this goal.

Furthermore, National Grid expects the UK to double the amount of its energy usage by 2050, partly due to the growth in electric vehicle ownership and the proposed abolition of new petrol and diesel cars by 2035. To keep up with this increased demand while achieving our carbon targets, an increase in renewable energy generating stations is required across the UK.

Flaxlands Solar Farm is anticipated to power approximately 21,000 homes, whilst reducing CO₂emissions by approximately 17,900 tonnes per year, over its 40-year lifespan and is therefore a key part of the UK climate and energy security targets, as well as Wiltshire’s regional climate ambitions.