Green light for 600 acre Laois solar farm with over 1.7 million square metres of panels

A solar farm covering over 600 acres has been granted planning permission by Laois County Council. 

Ørsted Onshore Ireland Midco Limited was granted planning permission for the 249 hectare, or 615 acre, solar farm across the townlands of  Morett, Killone, Cappakeel, Rossmore and Raheennahown north.

The Council granted permission for 40 years of operation, subject to 18 conditions, despite not knowing exactly how much electricity it would generate. 

Ørsted informed the Council that due to variables in solar conditions and technology, they were unable to give planners an exact figure of how much power would be generated. The solar farm is to be built on five parcels of land belonging to 13 consenting landowners. 

The planning application for 1,796,838 square metres of solar photovoltaic panels on ground mounted steel frames; 44 hardstandings for electrical skids and storage; underground power and communication cables and ducts and 22,753m of boundary security fencing was accompanied by Natura Impact Statement(NIS). 

It attracted 82 submissions, including submissions from Independent Laois TD Brian Stanley and Councillors Aisling Moran and Aidan Mullins. 

The solar farm is to be located within three kilometres from Ballybrittas, Emo and Vicarstown and less than seven kilometres from Portlaoise and Portarlington.   

According to documents lodged with the application, the solar farm would take 18 months to construct on the five parcels of land. 

The 82 submissions raised concerns about the lack of national policy or guidelines around solar farms, the lack of consultation, environmental issues, water, traffic, displacement of wildlife, light pollution, visual impact and the likelihood of glare and glint from the project.  

A planner for Laois County Council noted “a total of 94 dwellings were examined, and the assessment identified that glint and glare is geometrically possible at 84 of these.”

However, he stated that the overall impact on dwellings incurring glint and glare effects is only 17% of the dwellings examined once mitigating measures were in place. 

Although it’s unlikely to be any consolation to the impacted homeowners, he stated that, “based on the 2022 census, the housing stock in the County in April 2022 was 34,443. Therefore the number of properties impacted by glint and glare from this development represents just 0.05% of the total housing stock of the County.”

The planner noted that the impact on the Emo Court Demesne and the Rock of Dunamase was deemed as “imperceptible”. 

Pictured above: Approved solar farms in Laois

The planning application was lodged with Laois County Council on March 24, 2025. Further information was sought in May and supplied in July and the plan was approved on September 22. 

An associated planning application is being made to An Coimisiún Pleanála as part of a Strategic Infrastructure Development (SID). It will include the provision of a 110kV substation with electrical control building and ancillary electrical infrastructure, associated compound with palisade fence.