Planning permission has today been secured for an innovative sustainable hydrogen energy scheme in Nottinghamshire, which is thought to be a first of its kind in the UK.

To be located at Featherstone House Farm, in Bilsthorpe, the development features a 1.25-megawatt electrolyser inside a building based within a secure compound which will be adjacent to solar farms and a wind turbine already at the farm.

The electrolyser will use energy from the solar farm and wind turbine to turn water into green hydrogen, which once turned back into electricity through a fuel cell only emits water vapour and air.

Once generated, the fuel can be used off-site, or even by the landowner to power hydrogen farm vehicles.

Planning for the site was submitted to Newark and Sherwood District Council on behalf of C A Strawson Farming, who have working closely with Fisher German. Fisher German announced today that it has secured full planning for the site.

With no specific planning policies for hydrogen energy schemes in place, the firm created a robust submission which addressed issues such as ecology, archaeology, and drainage upfront and highlighted the environmental credentials.

The council was in full support of the application and gave approval within the eight-week time frame.

Sarah DeRenzy-Tomson, of Fisher German, who led the planning process, said, “This is a new area of technology and only a handful of planning applications have been approved for schemes of this nature.”

“The development appears industrial in character and appearance which is not normally appropriate in an open countryside setting. However, the merits of locating the facility adjacent to the point at which the electricity was being generated by the solar and wind farm was understood by the local authority.”

“We are pleased to have secured consent for this innovative scheme on behalf of the landowners, who are particularly keen to promote sustainable energy production and embrace new innovative technologies.”