Solar, wind and battery projects near Ongar (CM5)
7 solar, wind or battery projects of 150 kW or more are recorded within 10 km of the centre of CM5 (Epping Forest): 5 approved but not yet running. The largest live scheme is Thrift Solar Farm and BESS (30 MW solar farm, approved on 24 December 2025, not yet built), 6.7 km away. Source: Renewable Energy Planning Database, July 2026 extract.
Projects within 10 km of CM5
Projects of 1 MW and more (5)
| Project | Type | MW | Status (REPD) | Submitted | Decision | Record updated | Council | km |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ongar Landfill Ground mounted solar photovoltaicsolar farm | solar farm | 8.8 | application withdrawnupdated May 2022 | Feb 2021 | — | May 2022 | Brentwood | 3.0 |
| Solar Farm at Nickerlandssolar farm | solar farm | 25 | approved, not builtupdated Feb 2026 | Aug 2024 | granted Feb 2025 | Feb 2026 | Epping Forest | 5.5 |
| Thrift Solar Farm and BESSsolar farm | solar farm | 30 | approved, not builtupdated Jan 2026 | Jun 2025 | granted Dec 2025 | Jan 2026 | Epping Forest | 6.7 |
| Thrift Solar Farm and BESSbattery storage | battery storage | 30 | approved, not builtupdated Jan 2026 | Jun 2025 | granted Dec 2025 | Jan 2026 | Epping Forest | 6.7 |
| Upland Road - 49.9 Megawatt Solar Panelssolar farm | solar farm | 49.9 | refusedupdated Jul 2026 | Jul 2025 | refused Jun 2026 | Jul 2026 | Epping Forest | 9.7 |
Smaller schemes under 1 MW, mostly rooftop solar (2)
| Project | Type | MW | Status (REPD) | Submitted | Decision | Record updated | Council | km |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Langford Bridge Farm, Ongar Roadrooftop solar | rooftop solar | 0.2 | approved, not builtupdated Feb 2025 | Dec 2024 | granted Feb 2025 | Feb 2025 | Brentwood | 3.9 |
| Rolls Farm Barns, Hastingwood Roadrooftop solar | rooftop solar | 0.5 | approved, not builtupdated Mar 2023 | Oct 2022 | granted Jan 2023 | Mar 2023 | Epping Forest | 6.1 |
Distance from the average position of the CM5 postcodes, not from your home. Projects of 5 MW and more have their own page with dates and planning history.
By type
| Type | All | Pending | Approved | Operational | Refused | MW in pipeline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar farm | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 55 |
| Rooftop solar | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 |
| Battery storage | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 30 |
MW in pipeline: pending, approved and under-construction capacity.
How Epping Forest decides solar, wind and battery applications
| Applications | Epping Forest | UK |
|---|---|---|
| Decided applications (solar, wind, battery) | 10 | 10,236 |
| Refused | 3 (30%) | 19% |
| Solar refused | 3 of 9 | 12% |
| Battery storage refused | 0 of 1 | 16% |
| Median time from submission to decision | 27.6 weeks | 17.0 weeks |
| Appeals lodged / allowed | 0 / 1 | — |
Is the status up to date?
32% of applications still shown as pending in REPD were submitted more than two years ago, and only 37% of pending records were updated in the last 12 months, so some of them may already have been decided. Check the council's planning register for the latest decision.