Helios solar-storage gets consent in North Yorkshire

On 3 December 2025, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero granted a Development Consent Order (DCO) for the Helios Renewable Energy Project - a large solar farm with battery storage. We break down what that means and how people took part. The decision followed a full Planning Inspectorate examination and was signed by Minister Martin McCluskey on the Energy Secretary’s authority.

Helios will sit on farmland west of Camblesforth and north of Hirst Courtney in North Yorkshire. An on‑site substation and underground cable will connect the scheme to National Grid’s Drax substation. Statutory notices and the project site indicate order limits of roughly 476 hectares.

Who applied, and when? The applicant is Enso Green Holdings D Limited, which submitted the scheme on 2 July 2024; the Planning Inspectorate accepted it for examination on 30 July 2024. After examination, the Examining Authority sent its recommendation to ministers on 3 September 2025.

If you’re teaching this, here’s the DCO route in one go. Applications move through acceptance (up to 28 days), pre‑examination (people register and a preliminary meeting is held), examination (up to six months), recommendation (up to three months) and a final ministerial decision (up to three months). These timings are set out by the Planning Inspectorate under the Planning Act 2008.

Why did Helios follow the national route? Under the Planning Act, onshore electricity generation in England above 50 megawatts goes through the NSIP process and needs a DCO. In 2025, government changed the threshold for new solar and onshore wind schemes to more than 100 MW, with transitional rules so projects already accepted - like Helios - stayed in the regime they started in.

What exactly is consented? Government and applicant materials describe ground‑mounted solar arrays, a battery energy storage system, an on‑site substation and the underground grid link to Drax, alongside fencing, planting and maintenance access. The DCO can also authorise land rights, temporary possession and construction access where needed.

How big is “over 50 MW” in everyday terms? Ofgem puts a typical household’s annual electricity use at about 2,700 kWh. The project’s ecology consultant Avian Ecology says Helios is designed at around 190 MW, which they estimate could serve roughly 47,500 homes; treat that as a planning estimate, not a promise of output.

Your say in projects like this matters. During the six‑month examination, registered “interested parties” can submit written evidence and speak at hearings. For Helios, the project site lists an Open Floor Hearing in York in March 2025 as one of the ways people contributed.

What happens next? After a decision there’s a six‑week period when anyone can challenge the decision in the High Court. The developer must then discharge ‘requirements’ attached to the DCO - similar to planning conditions - before starting works. Consultation slides suggested an average of about 36 HGV deliveries per day during a 12‑month construction phase, so look for a traffic management plan to firm up those numbers.

If you want to read the primary documents, start with the decision letter and the Examining Authority’s report; the full case file is on the National Infrastructure Planning website. Officials note Helios is the 102nd energy application completed within statutory timescales out of 169 examined to date, which helps show how routine this process has become.