PV park bid in reforested area rejected 

An application to construct a photovoltaic (PV) park in a reforestation area has been rejected it emerged on Tuesday, in a case which is expected to set a precedent for others of similar nature. 

The rejection of the application for the particular PV park in Maroni, in the Larnaca district, was based on an earlier decision by the ministries of the interior, agriculture and commerce, to not offer licences for PV parks in nature restoration areas. 

The application by the company “Main Group Europe Ltd” was submitted to the planning department on February 22, 2022. The park was to have with a capacity of 3,623MWP. 

According to the interior ministry, the bid for the park’s construction got rejected from the agriculture ministry and the Larnaca district office, as it had been proposed to be built on a plot in a land reclamation zone, as well in close proximity to a residential zone. 

Larnaca MP Christos Orphanides has reportedly asked Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou to inform parliament officially of the final decision over the matter. 

It is expected that other PV park developers will be deterred from submitting similar applications in future.