Renewable sites › University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array
University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array
University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array is an operational 0.88 MW solar farm in Central Bedfordshire, generating since 13 July 2023. Planning permission was granted on 2 March 2023, 3 months after submission. Operator of record: Cranfield University.
Planning and build timeline
| Application submitted | 22 November 2022 |
| Permission granted | 2 March 2023 3 months after submission |
| Operational | 13 July 2023 4 months after consent |
Screening a site of your own?
Central Bedfordshire approves 97% of solar farms. Redline puts that number, and everything else the record holds, against your own boundary: the authority’s actual approval rate and decision times, every designation inside the red line, agricultural grade, 1 m LIDAR earthworks, how contested the grid is, and yield with a P90 — before you spend on a consultant.
Arrives prefilled with University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array’s recorded coordinate — swap in your own postcode or coordinates.
What this site sits on
The recorded coordinate falls on land surveyed as Grade 3 agricultural land. The published survey does not split Grade 3 into 3a and 3b, so this alone does not settle whether the land counts as best and most versatile.
REPD gives one representative coordinate per scheme, not the site boundary, so this describes the point on record rather than the whole site — a large site can straddle a designation edge. Boundaries come from planning.data.gov.uk, which publishes for England only.
Central Bedfordshire’s record on solar
Central Bedfordshire has decided 32 solar farms and approved 97%, taking a median of 3.2 months. See every solar farm decision in Central Bedfordshire →
Other built sites within 15 km
| Site | MW | Distance |
|---|---|---|
Solar Photovoltaics · Operational | 0.44 | 0.3 km |
Solar Photovoltaics · Operational | 1 | 1.6 km |
Solar Photovoltaics · Operational | 1.97 | 3.4 km |
Landfill Gas · Operational | 11 | 3.6 km |
Landfill Gas · Operational | 11 | 3.8 km |
Solar Photovoltaics · Operational | — | 4.8 km |
Solar Photovoltaics · Under Construction | 0.26 | 5.6 km |
Biomass (dedicated) · Operational | 16 | 5.8 km |
How big is University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array?
University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array has a recorded installed capacity of 0.88 MW. That figure is the capacity registered in REPD, which is the scheme as consented — the metered output of a site can differ.
Who operates University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array?
REPD records the operator as Cranfield University. Ownership of built renewable assets changes hands regularly and REPD is published quarterly, so treat this as the operator of record rather than confirmation of who owns it today.
When was University Way, Cranfield - Solar Array approved and built?
The application was submitted on 22 November 2022. Permission was granted on 2 March 2023, 3 months later. The site became operational on 13 July 2023, 4 months after consent.
Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database (REPD), Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Open Government Licence v3.0, plus planning designation boundaries from planning.data.gov.uk (England only). REPD is published quarterly and covers schemes of roughly 150 kW and above. Capacity is the installed capacity on record, not metered generation. Operator is the operator of record at the last extract, not confirmation of present ownership. Reference 12802.
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