Plans for huge Devon solar farm put on hold amid further assessments

Plans for a proposed large-scale solar development on farmland near Holsworthy have been put on hold while further technical assessments are carried out.

The company behind the Beacon Solar project has withdrawn from the Planning Inspectorate’s pre-application service, pausing its consultation process. 

An update confirming the move has been published on the Planning Inspectorate’s website.

The Beacon Solar scheme is a proposed solar park seeking development consent. 

ABOVE: Devon CPRE Beacon Solar - Chairman Steve Crowther addresses the meeting (photo by Sharon Goble)

The project has been in development for around 18 months and has involved environmental and technical assessments.

In a statement to the Gazette, Beacon Solar said: “Following the collection of environmental and technical data over the last 18 months, the proposed Beacon Solar farm is undergoing further assessment in terms of its layout, scale and detailed design. While this process is ongoing, there will be a pause to the consultation process and as such the project has been withdrawn from the NSIP process. Further updates will be issued in due course following the completion of the various technical assessments.”

The proposal, which remains at a pre-application stage, had outlined plans for a solar array covering around 2,700 acres of farmland in north-west Devon, with a generating capacity of more than 100 megawatts. 

Due to its scale, it would have been classed as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, meaning any final decision would be made by the government rather than local planners.

The plans have faced opposition from Devon CPRE. 

Devon CPRE is an independent local charity which says it campaigns to protect rural landscapes and prevent what it describes as poor planning and policies that could harm Devon’s countryside.

The charity held a public meeting at Holsworthy Memorial Hall in October 2025 and launched an online petition opposing the scheme.

Torridge and Tavistock MP Sir Geoffrey Cox and members of the Stop Beacon Solar residents’ group attended the meeting and spoke against the proposals. 

ABOVE: Devon CPRE Beacon Solar meeting in Holsworthy, 31 October 25 (photo by Sharon Goble)

Devon CPRE said its petition has received 4,399 signatures to date.

Commenting on the project update, Devon CPRE chairman Steve Crowther said: “We are pleased to see that Beacon Solar have withdrawn their application for a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project – a gigantic 2,700-acre solar farm which would produce no energy for more than a decade – across the landscape at Holsworthy.

“We hope that they have noted the reaction from thousands of residents of the area and members of the wider public who cherish this landscape; and will now redirect their investment into brownfield or rooftop renewable energy projects.

“If all the developers now eyeing up our green fields would do that, we could exceed the government’s solar targets for 2050 without ruining landscapes and taking millions of pounds worth of food production out of our economy. We will watch very closely what this developer – a Swiss-based group with many fingers in the renewables pie – does next. And we will be ready and waiting if they come this way again.

“In the meantime, we urge Devonians to keep signing and circulating our petition, at devoncpre.org.uk, to help us defend Devon’s unique landscape assets from mega-solar speculators.”

Beacon Solar said further updates would be provided once its assessments are complete.