FAQs

Longmarsh Green Energy is a proposal for solar energy generation, battery energy storage and a co-located data centre campus in west Norfolk.

It would connect into the existing transmission network substation at Walpole, providing secure renewable energy, produced in the UK for our homes, businesses, transport systems and industries.

At the same time, the data centre campus – essential infrastructure for the modern economy – would support digital services people use every day.

Evolution Power Limited is a UK-based, independent energy developer that previously successfully obtained the Stonestreet Green Solar DCO. The applicant will be EPL Norfolk Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Evolution Power Limited.

There are two main parts to Longmarsh Green Energy – the Western Site located to the north-east of the village of Tilney St Lawrence, and the Eastern Site, located near to the villages of Fincham and Barton Bendish.

The Western Site would contain solar panels, battery storage and a co-located data centre campus. The data centre campus and the Western Site Substation would be located in the centre of the site at least 300m from nearby homes and other amenity sensitive receptors.

The Eastern Site would contain solar panels and battery storage, with the substation located in the western part of the site at least 300m from the nearest homes and other amenity sensitive receptors.

We are proposing a combination of overhead lines and underground cable sections to link the sites to each other and to the grid. Please see page 18 of the Community Consultation Leaflet for more information about connecting our sites to each other and to the grid.

We are aware that a number of projects are in development or construction near to Walpole Substation, including several National Grid projects. The impact of this project near to Walpole is limited to an underground cable in the immediate vicinity of the existing substation and then an overhead line to the east, located within the corridor of the existing overhead lines.

Put simply, a data centre is a building that houses computer systems, servers and digital storage to store, process and distribute large amounts of digital information.

Data centres are crucial to the UK economy as they support the online networks we all rely on. From emails, banking and streaming services to national defence and our NHS records, the nation depends on continuous data centre operation. The UK Government says that they “underpin almost all economic activity and innovation”¹ and in September 2024, designated them as critical national infrastructure.

¹ Cyber security and resilience policy statement, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, April 2025

Modern data centres use closed loop cooling, which means that once the system is filled, the liquid is recirculated rather than continually taking water from the mains. Our proposed data centre will use this approach and will also take renewable power direct from the Longmarsh Green Energy solar farm. More information on our proposals is included on page 17 of the Community Consultation leaflet

One of the major challenges for the UK in attracting data centre investment is the cost of UK power. We are also aware of concerns regarding the impact of data centres on the electricity grid. Co-locating the data centre campus allows some of the electricity generated by the solar farm to be provided at low cost directly to the data centre. This reduces the cost of electricity for the data centre, providing a local supply to meet the data centre requirements and therefore reducing the volume of electricity required from the grid.

We understand that Longmarsh Green Energy could affect the communities and environment around it. To reduce potential effects, we have developed some key commitments that will guide the design as the proposals develop.

We will protect the amenity of nearby homes, and other amenity sensitive receptors by:

• maintaining a minimum distance of 30m between these buildings and any new solar panels.
• Locating any inverters/transformers at least 100m away to limit any potential noise impacts.
• Providing a separation distance of at least 300m from major built infrastructure including the data centre campus, the Eastern and Western Substations and battery storage areas.
• Working with residents nearest to the proposals to develop site-specific mitigation measures, including appropriate planting, screening and landscape treatments.

We will protect existing ecology and enhance habitats by:

• Maintaining a minimum buffer of 100m between the Islington Heronry Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and any above-ground infrastructure.
• Developing opportunities for new and enhanced habitats that support local wildlife and strengthen ecological networks.

We will protect and enhance public rights of way by:

• Using appropriate separation distances, landscape screening and design measures to limit any visual impacts for users of public rights of way.
• Exploring opportunities to improve connectivity within the wider rights of way network, including new permissive path links.

We will avoid routing traffic through local villages by:

• Developing a traffic strategy that specifies routes for construction HGVs that avoid local villages, including Tilney St Lawrence, Barton Bendish and Fincham, where possible.
• Routing operational traffic associated with the data centre campus away from Tilney St Lawrence.

We will support local communities by:

• Establishing a community benefit fund to support local initiatives and projects.
• Exploring opportunities for additional local energy initiatives that provide a direct and lasting benefit for homes located nearest to the project.

Solar farms are relatively low-lying. We are proposing significant minimum distances between the taller elements of Longmarsh Green Energy and homes and other amenity sensitive receptors. We understand, however, that it would represent a change to what is currently there.

The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) will examine the effect the project could have on the landscape and from a range of viewpoints around it, including potential glint and glare effects and/or radar impacts at RAF Marham. We are aiming to design the project to limit its visual impact on nearby residents and others such as users of public rights of way and will seek to agree mitigation with neighbouring residents to help screen the site where possible.

Longmarsh Green Energy requires an environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). EIA is an ongoing process where the purpose is to assess the potential effects – both positive and negative – of a development on the environment.

EIA also acts as a design tool, helping projects make better-informed and more sustainable decisions from an early stage. We will carry out an EIA and submit an Environmental Statement (ES), that summarises the outcomes, as part of our DCO application.

A full suite of ecology surveys is underway to identify any habitats or species that need to be specifically considered as part of the design process. The project design, through its approach to field and hedgerow planting, will seek to deliver a significant biodiversity net gain and we will also look to agree other ways to enhance ecology, for example by introducing bird and bat boxes.

We are not proposing to divert or close any of the limited number of public rights of way within the project site. While the project will need secure boundaries, we will also consider – and assess – local access to public rights of way and countryside amenity as well the potential for improvements to connectivity between communities by introducing new permissive paths.

We understand that the use of agricultural land for solar is of interest. At the moment solar farms occupy less than 0.1% of the UK’s land area. Scaling up solar in line with Government targets to decarbonise the electricity grid is expected to bring this up to just 0.3%.

The total project site area proposed, including cable routes, is a very small proportion of land in the East of England. We will assess agricultural land and confirm any identified impacts on food security to help inform our design. We will report on this in the Environmental Statement.

We understand that Longmarsh Green Energy could affect the communities and environment around it. We will support communities by establishing a community benefit fund to support local initiatives and projects. During the community consultation, we are seeking suggestions as to how we can make a positive local contribution, whether that’s through funding for local projects, schools, environmental programmes or other local benefit initiatives.

We will also explore opportunities for additional local energy initiatives that provide a direct and lasting benefit for homes located nearest to the project.

The proposed data centre campus could also deliver economic and employment benefits including:

• Significant investment in the region – the proposed data centre campus could result in over £25bn of capital investment in the region (including IT servers).
• Employment – likely to provide thousands of construction jobs, over 500 permanent roles and will support a further 1,500 additional jobs.
• Business rates – expected to result in over £20m in local business rates paid annually which could be used by the local authorities for local improvements.

Decommissioning of the solar farm will take place after 60 years of operation. At the Eastern Site, all above-ground infrastructure will be removed. The Western Site data centre will remain, along with the Western Site substation and battery storage to support data centre operations. The Western Cable Route will also be retained. All Western Site solar generation infrastructure will be removed. We will recycle or dispose of materials in line with industry best practice at the time.

Decommissioning is expected to take around 18 months, with activities and effects similar to the construction phase. Once decommissioning is complete, the land – apart from certain biodiversity and enhancement mitigation areas – would be restored to a condition where it could be returned to its current agricultural use.