Solar energy news and discussion

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As Britain bakes, ministers quietly park plans for solar carports

Ministers have quietly shelved plans that could have transformed Britain's biggest car parks into shaded power stations

26 June 2026

Across much of England and Wales this week, finding a parking space in the shade has felt like winning the lottery. Drivers who weren’t so fortunate have returned to cars that feel more like ovens. Steering wheels are almost too hot to hold, seatbelt buckles burn your fingers and the blast of hot air that escapes when you open the door is enough to make you question whether it’s worth getting in at all.

It’s something most of us simply accept. Large supermarket, hospital and station car parks are designed to store vehicles, not to make life comfortable. But what if they could do more?

Imagine canopies stretching across rows of parked cars. In summer they’d provide welcome shade. And when it rains, they’d keep shoppers, patients and commuters a little drier on the walk to and from their vehicles. Better still, the roofs themselves would generate electricity, helping to power nearby buildings or electric vehicle chargers while earning money rather than just costing it.

It sounds like an attractive idea. It’s also one that Britain has just decided not to pursue.

https://eastangliabylines.co.uk/environ ... -carports/



Image by Flicker02 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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Italy’s largest solar plant goes online

29 Jun 2026

Spanish energy company Iberdrola has inaugurated the Fenix photovoltaic plant, a 243 MW facility located in the Sicilian provinces of Catania and Enna.

With the commissioning of the project, Iberdrola surpasses the previous largest operating photovoltaic plant in Italy, a 170 MW project located in Viterbo in the Lazio region, which had set the national benchmark for utility-scale PV capacity until now.

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2026/06/29/ ... es-online/

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UK’s second largest solar farm approved on Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire border

Published 8th July 2026

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has granted planning consent for the UK’s second largest solar farm which will be built on the border of Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.

The One Earth Solar Farm has been cleared for construction on land surrounding the River Trent near the village of South Clifton, the Energy Department (Desnz) announced on Tuesday.

Under the developers’ proposals, the clean energy project will have the capacity to generate up to 740 megawatts (MW) of electricity – enough to power the equivalent of 200,000 homes, which is around half those in Lincolnshire.

The solar farm is set to be the second largest in the UK following the Government’s decision to approve the 800MW Springwell Solar Farm in North Kesteven, Lincolnshire, in April.

It comes a week after ministers backed two other large solar farms – Pear Tree Hill in East Yorkshire and Dean Moor in West Cumbria.

https://www.hellorayo.co.uk/hits-radio/ ... solar-farm

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