Thrive Renewables has acquired the 14MW Dunmow solar farm in Essex, in the UK.
Construction of the project is now complete and operations are expected to start this month.
Dunmow is the third project to be funded by Fair Play Clean Energy, Thrive’s joint venture with TopCashback Sustainability, which brings together a combined £80m in capital to fund new clean energy projects in the UK.
It is also Thrive’s first, wholly owned ground mount solar project and forms part of the company’s ambitious growth plans to double the generation capacity of its portfolio by 2028.
Thrive recently announced that it has already made significant progress with this goal, securing new project development rights that will take its total capacity from 91.5MW to 170.1MW by 2027.
Once commissioned, the project will be capable of generating up to 14,500MWh.
Thrive will also offer an opportunity for shared ownership, with the local community able to own up to a 10% stake.
The Dunmow solar project was originally owned by the developer, PS Renewables, which Thrive will be retaining as the EPC contractor on the project.
Other organisations involved in the transaction include TLT, which conducted the legal due diligence and Locogen, which carried out the technical due diligence.
The project has a biodiversity management plan in place, with measures such as wildflower grassland creation and hedgerow enhancement expected to result in a significant ‘biodiversity net gain’ (+65% for habitat units and +19% for hedgerow units), exceeding the typical minimum 10% threshold set by planning authorities in England.
Thrive will also be investigating what additional voluntary actions could be implemented to further enhance these existing habitat management commitments.
Monika Paplaczyk, Chief Investment Officer at Thrive Renewables, said: “Solar power is a critical technology for net zero and one of the cheapest ways to generate clean electricity today.
“We’re excited to have acquired Dunmow, further diversifying our project portfolio as we work to deliver value across the technology mix and contribute to the 47 GW of solar capacity needed by the end of the decade as part of the Government’s Clean Power 20230 Action Plan.”
Jose Luis Gandia, Managing Director at PS Renewables, said: “We are pleased to have completed this transaction with Thrive Renewables and to begin a relationship that will undoubtedly support the UK’s clean energy ambitions.”