PLANS have been lodged to build a solar park in a disused quarry on Portland.

The Crown Estate and Albion Stone have submitted a planning application to Weymouth & Portland Borough Council.

The planning application is for a 3MW Solar Park which when operational would generate enough green energy to power around 400 homes and Albion Stone’s masonry factory.

The proposed site for the solar park consists of 7.4 ha of land on the western section of Independent Quarries site at Easton. The land is owned by The Crown Estate and leased to Albion Stone.

The submission follows consultation with the local community which highlights support for the proposals.

Malcolm Burns, Portfolio Manager, The Crown Estate, said: ‘’The site is particularly well suited for a solar park. It brings back in to productive use spent quarry land while its landscape means that most of the solar park will not be visible from neighbouring homes.

"Our application is for a 25 year period following which the land would be restored.’’

Michael Poultney, Managing Director, Albion Stone, said: “At Albion Stone we are always looking for ways to make our business more efficient and sustainable. This initiative, which we are undertaking with The Crown Estate, has the potential to power about 400 homes and our factory operations on Portland."

In January 2015 it was estimated that the UK now has enough solar energy capacity to power 1.5m homes. This scheme will add to that capacity and contribute to the UK’s commitment to harness clean energy from renewable sources.

A decision on the planning application is expected in the spring, with the project potentially completed by early 2016.