Trillions of dollars have been spent on military infrastructure in preparation for or engaging in war. Some of that old infrastructure is beginning to be used for more peaceful and environmentally friendly purposes – the production of solar power.
U.K based Rockspring Property Investment Managers LLP has announced plans to develop one of the first solar parks in the UK, with the chosen site being a runway for Lancaster bombers at the former World War Two Westcott airfield; which is now a business park.
The first phase will involve the installation of 1,500 solar panels in the middle of the runway, followed by expansions that would see the capacity extended to at least 1.2MW in size, providing enough energy to power the entire park in the daytime.
Rockspring says the facility will be eligible for the UK’s renewable electricity feed-in tariff scheme and annual returns are predicted to average over 10%.
Earlier this month German company Solon SE announced its first two turnkey ground mounted solar power plants with a total nominal output of three megawatts had been constructed on the former site of two launch pads for intercontinental nuclear ballistic missiles.
“These power plant projects are an excellent demonstration of how photovoltaics can create added value; former military sites are now hosting solar power plants that generate environmentally-friendly energy and reduce CO2 emissions,” said Stefan Säuberlich, CEO of Solon SE.
“Brownfield” sites are increasingly being used for solar energy production. Brownfield sites are abandoned government, industrial and commercial facilities often contaminated with materials that make them unsuitable for residential purposes, but are perfect for applications such as solar farms.
