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Sunderland Solar Farm

A revolutionary site providing a sustainable solution towards client’s net zero target.

Aerial view of an east/west orientated solar development

Location

Sunderland, United Kingdom

Client

Sunderland Association Football Club

Architect

Generating up to 40 MW of renewable energy that will power 12,000 homes, Cundall is assisting Sunderland AFC with the development of Academy of Light, solar farm in Sunderland. This is a part of their ambitious plan to be the first club in the UK to achieve net zero emissions by 2040 to assist with the transition to a low carbon environment.

We have been involved at a multi-disciplinary level throughout the process, with our civil engineering team producing the indicative layout and the electrical team producing the electrical design. Our team was also heavily involved in the assessment process of the project, for example, the geotechnical team provided advice on land contamination. Overall, we supported the project by providing a sustainability assessment, glint and glare assessment, transportation surveys, EIA surveys, heritage surveys, and 3D modelling.

Rachel Thompson, senior planning consultant said "It has been really interesting to work on this renewable energy project. The proposed solar farm is in the green belt therefore any development must be justified robustly. The project has seen significant interest from local people and the public consultation events which we hosted were very well attended, which helped the whole project team to propose a suitable design."

Key fact

The project is set to assist meeting national targets for both energy supply and low carbon energy development

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Key fact

This project will help power 12,000 homes

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Andrew in an open collar shirt sat at a white table in front of a glazed wall

Andrew Hird

Associate Consultant, Environmental Planning

View bio

The proposed solar development at the Academy of Light has been a fantastic project for our teams. The project started as a query for our town planning service team and has evolved into a multi-disciplinary collaboration. We're very pleased to be helping Sunderland AFC meet their aims of becoming energy self-sufficient from renewable sources by 2028.

Sunderland Association Football Club crest

Sunderland Association Football Club crest

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