The UK government has approved one of the country’s largest solar developments: the 450-megawatt Steeple Renewables Project in Nottinghamshire, pairing vast solar generation with 150 megawatts of battery storage so clean power keeps flowing after sunset.
What the approval covers
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) granted a development consent order for the Steeple Renewables Project on 9 October 2026, according to an official GOV.UK announcement.
The project, near Sturton-le-Steeple in Nottinghamshire, will combine approximately 450 MW of solar generation with an approximately 150 MW battery energy storage system.
The application was submitted to the Planning Inspectorate by Steeple Solar Farm Limited on 14 May 2025 and accepted for examination on 11 June 2025. After a six-month examination, the Examining Authority sent its recommendations to the Secretary of State on 10 July 2026. It was the 115th energy application out of 183 examined to date, completed within the statutory timescale.
The project will be built close to the decommissioned West Burton Power Station, using spare grid capacity released by the facility’s closure.
Jobs, investment and local benefits
Developer RES says the project will deliver an estimated £224 million of investment in the local economy and support around 400 jobs during construction and operation, alongside a community benefits package worth approximately £13 million over the project’s lifetime.
Once operating, the solar element is expected to generate enough clean electricity for around 180,000 homes a year — roughly half of all households in Nottinghamshire. The battery storage will add flexibility by storing electricity when supply is plentiful and releasing it when demand rises.
RES, which describes itself as the world’s largest independent renewable energy company and is headquartered in Hertfordshire, has been developing the scheme near Sturton-le-Steeple since 2023. “This area in Nottinghamshire has a proud energy history and Steeple Renewables Project will build on that legacy by connecting the new technologies supporting the country’s clean energy future,” the company’s solar development director Karl O’Mullan said, according to industry publication reNews.
The consented project will also deliver biodiversity net gain measures designed to leave the land richer in nature than it is today.
Part of a wider solar wave
The consent is the second for a large-scale UK solar project in as many days, following the development consent order granted to Island Green Power’s 500 MW Green Hill Solar Farm, industry publications reported.
According to Solar Power Portal, it is the third solar nationally significant infrastructure project consented by Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh since she took office.
The grid capacity around the disused West Burton power station is drawing strong developer interest: Solar Media Market Research’s database lists 14 solar plants across all stages of development that will connect at West Burton, with a combined capacity of 1,586 MWp, the publication reports.
Key facts
- Project: Steeple Renewables Project — 450 MW solar + 150 MW battery storage, near Sturton-le-Steeple, Nottinghamshire
- Decision: development consent order granted by DESNZ on 9 October 2026
- Applicant: Steeple Solar Farm Limited; application submitted 14 May 2025
- Benefits: about £224 million local investment, around 400 jobs, electricity for about 180,000 homes a year
- Community: about £13 million community benefits package over the project’s lifetime
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