A farmer who objected to a huge solar farm on the border of Rutland had his own plan for panels rejected – because he was told National Grid did not have capacity for any more surplus electricity.

Jan McCourt says he believes in the principles of green energy – and has solar panels on his own land to power his farm.

But he says this example of sustainable energy generation is far removed from the large scale solar and wind farms that are "blighting the countryside".

The farmer owns Northfield Farm in Rutland, which produces, processes and retails its own products.

He believes his farm will be adversely impacted by increased flooding when the new solar farm is built nearby – on farmland at Stygate Lane between Pickwell, Somerby and Whissendine.

The facility will be the size of 130 football pitches – 87 hectares or 215 acres – and the developer RWE Renewables claims it could power about 25,000 homes over the next 40 years.

It will be situated on two parcels of land separated by the A606 and owned by two different farmers. 

The site lies predominantly in Leicestershire with the smaller section crossing into Rutland.

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Mr McCourt told Rutland's planning committee last month that the serious negative effect of long-term solar on the state of the land had not been considered and that this "appalling application" would bring flooding, noise, pollution and devastation to wildlife.

Councillors were told that the main risk would be during the construction phase – but that phased construction and soil management plans would be in place to minimise the likelihood of flooding.

Mr McCourt said: "I put 54kwh of solar panels on one of our barns during Covid and added a small battery array a year or two later. 

"The result of this is that we generate approximately a third of our fairly substantial annual usage.

"But subsequently, when I made enquiry to Western Power, which was the predecessor to National Grid, I was told that there was not capacity locally for me to add another array of panels. 

"The purpose of doing this was a combination of sustainability and economics.

"I didn't follow up on this, but when suddenly our whole area is overwhelmed by applications for solar farms, it seems clear to me that preference has been given to the large global players at the expense of the small local businesses. It's double standards."

A National Grid electricity distribution spokesman said: "Grid connection decisions depend on where a project is located and which part of the network it connects to.

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"They are not based on size alone, and outcomes will vary depending on local capacity, connection voltage and network conditions at the time.

"Planning permission and a grid connection are also separate processes. 

"A development may receive planning approval but still require further work on the electricity network before it can export power."

A spokesman for RWE said: "We were pleased to see both Melton and Rutland councils vote to grant planning permission for Lumiere Solar Farm. 

"The next steps are to review and work through the subsequent planning conditions, we are also liaising with the local electrical grid operator about the connection. 

"We will update local stakeholders and the community when we have completed these steps."