Negative response to battery farm bid

Plans rejected over fire safety fears

- Phil Corrigan Local Democracy Reporter

COUNCILLORS have refused plans for a 99MW battery energy storage site at a farm.

Root Power said the proposed facility at New House Farm, at Bagnall, would have supported the transition to renewable energy.

But nearly 150 people objected to the application, with concerns being raised over fire risk, noise and the impact on the Green Belt.

Members of the planning applications committee at Staffordshire Moorlands District Council have now voted unanimously to refuse permission, in line with their officers’ recommendation.

The applicant had called for the item to be deferred, saying that issues could be resolved in time.

But the committee disagreed.