Westmeath County Council grants permission for 3.9-hectare solar farm at Killucan Road, Kinnegad, Co. Westmeath

In context

It is one of 7 solar farm applications Westmeath County Council has received in the past twelve months, against 335 nationally. Of the 573 such applications decided by councils in the past three years, 92% were granted.

What happens next

The applicant, or anyone who made a submission on the application, can appeal the decision to An Coimisiún Pleanála within four weeks of 25 September 2025. If no appeal is lodged, the council’s decision stands and a final grant issues.

The development description, as lodged

Verbatim from the Westmeath County Council register. This is the source for every figure in the story above.

construction of a large-scale residential development [LRD] of 125 no. residential units (103 no. houses and 22 no. apartments) and a childcare facility as follows: (A) The residential provision will comprise: 11 no. two-storey 2 bed terrace units (98 sq. m. gross floor area each), 56 no. two-storey 3 bed terrace units (112.1 sq. m. gross floor area each) and 26 no. two-storey 4 bed terrace units (135.1 sq. m. gross floor area each), 10 no. two-storey 4 bed detached and semi-detached units (ranging in size from 122.1 sq. m. to 137.4 sq. m. gross floor area each) and 22 no. apartment units consisting of 2 no. 2 bed units (ranging in size from 75 sq. m. to 80.2 sq. m. gross floor area each) in each of 11 no. two-storey detached blocks; (B) The single storey childcare facility will comprise 303 sq. metres gross floor area; (C) Access is at an existing priority junction at the L1015 Killucan Road and access for pedestrians and cyclists only (and emergency vehicular access) is at Manorfield to the southeast; (D) The proposed site layout provides a total of 215 no. car parking spaces as follows: 165 no. allocated spaces for 125 no. residential units, 30 no. visitor spaces, 4 no. EV charging spaces and 2 no. disabled spaces and 14 no. spaces including 1 no. disabled space at the childcare facility; (E) Secure bicycle parking including visitor bicycle parking is provided at each residential unit and 8 no. bicycle parking spaces are provided at the childcare facility; and (F) The development will also comprise the removal of the roads and services infrastructure constructed pursuant to permission Reg. Ref. 04/5310 [ABP Ref. No. PL.25M.211056], and the construction of the network of internal roads, cycle ways and footpaths, public open spaces (c. 0.54 ha. in total), landscaping, boundary treatment works, solar PV panels on the childcare facility and each residential unit, site services, and all ancillary and associated works on a site of c. 3.87 ha.