MORAY COUNCIL has granted planning permission for what will be Scotland's largest solar farm.

Elgin Energy's Speyslaw Solar Farm will occupy just under 50 hectares on three adjacent fields on the Innes Estate, near Urquhart, with about 80,000 ground-mounted solar panels capable of generating 20MW of electricity. All cabling at the site will be underground, allowing sheep to graze around the panels. Work on the site is expected to start within the next few months.

The largest Scottish solar farm is currently a 13MW project at Errol Estate in Perthshire, which went live in May last year. That is also under the auspices of Elgin Energy, which now has 24 utility scale Solar Photovoltaic operations underway across Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland, accounting for some 250MW of solar power – and a further 750MW of projects at various stages of planning.

Permission for the Speyslaw solar farm is valid for 30 years, after which the developer will have one year to decommission the works and restore the site to a condition agreed with the council.

In a statement, the company said: "Existing field boundaries will not be disturbed and mature hedgerows will provide generous screening for the site. Elgin Energy has contacted those neighbours in the immediate vicinity of the site and has offered to answer any queries which might arise.

"The land will remain in agricultural use in the form of sheep grazing while being used for the dual purpose of generating low-carbon renewable energy."

Councillor Claire Feaver, chairwoman of Moray Council's Planning and Regulatory Services Committee, said: "A significant amount of renewable energy will be generated by this solar farm over the next 30 years. The opportunity to continue grazing on the land, together with the habitat management plan, will maintain and enhance the diverse range of species in and around the site. I see this as a win-win."