West Burton NSIP Solar

CHALLENGE

Island Green Power (IGP) needed to find and secure land agreements over up to 4,500 acres of land in Lincolnshire. This was to connect two Nationally Significant Infrastructure project scale solar farms into the former West Burton Power Station site. 

The challenge was identifying a patchwork of land holdings made up of as few separate landowners as possible, whilst meeting the strict planning requirements of a solar project of this scale, then managing the landowners and their agents through the development process.

SOLUTION

Using advanced Geospatial Information Systems (GIS), Savills systematically mapped and analysed IGP’s 1,250 km² target search area to determine suitable locations for solar farm development. This process effectively excluded land subject to restrictive planning designations such as Green Belt, National Parks, National Landscapes, Sites of Special Scientific Interest, and zones at high flood risk. 

The subsequent phase involved identifying landowners within the suitable locations. Utilising GIS, Savills developed comprehensive land ownership maps, enabling the identification of land parcels owned by Savills managed estates or by landowners connected to Savills existing representatives. Leveraging these established relationships facilitated effective and targeted introductions to relevant landowners through familiar communication channels. This strategic approach enhanced the efficacy of initial engagements and reinforced trust by engaging landowners via their existing professional relationships ultimately securing meaningful relationships between landowners and our client. 

Savills successfully negotiated option agreements for the lease of the identified landholdings. This provided IGP with the necessary legal assurance to proceed confidently with their application for a Development Consent Order (DCO), which was subsequently granted in January 2025.

RESULTS

Savills Identified and secured land agreements with five different landowners to bring together the land required to deliver the solar project. 

West Burton Solar Project was granted development Consent on 24th January 2025 for 480 MW of solar. Alongside the Cottam project granted in September 2024 comprising 600 MW of solar.