Jersey Electricity drops St Martin solar farm idea

Friday, 6 February 2026 10:23

Jersey Electricity has dropped plans for a solar farm on land in St Martin belonging to the King.

Last summer the energy company said it wanted to combine a ground array and food production on fields west of Ransoms Garden Centre known as Belle Fontaine.

It now says a review and public feedback has ruled it out as a location.

A statement said:

"...further research was carried out into land characteristics and agrivoltaic compatibility, alongside consideration of feedback from stakeholders.

"Following this additional work and in consultation with the Crown, JE has taken the decision not to progress a solar development at the Belle Fontaine site in St Martin, located on Crown land."

The panels would have covered around half of the 90 vergee Crown-owned site and generated 5.2MWp, enough to power 40% of the parish's homes.

JE says it continues to look for other suitable locations as it targets 25MW of locally generated solar power by the end of 2027 - equivalent to a third of peak summer demand.

"Ground-mounted solar remains a cost-effective way to diversify Jersey’s electricity supply, strengthen the Island’s energy resilience and support environmental objectives."

JE switched on its first solar farm in St Clement last year and has ground arrays in the pipeline in St John and St Mary, although the compnay withdrew an application in February 2025 for Champs Verts following objections.