AN ALDERMASTON-based renewables company has been recognised for its ground-breaking solar farm development.

Anesco has won a national award for its Clayhill project, the UK’s first solar farm to be created without government funding.

Clayhill was named Solar PV Project of the Year as part of the 2018 National Energy Efficiency Awards.

The farm, officially opened last September, covers an area of 44.58 acres and generates enough renewable energy to power the equivalent of 2,500 homes.

Anesco’s team navigated a range of technical and commercial obstacles to achieve a subsidy-free development at Clayhill, using relationships along the supply chain and re-engineering the process of design and construction.

Steve Shine, executive chairman at Anesco, said: “Winning this award is fantastic recognition for the achievements of the team at Anesco.

"It was a ground-breaking project and its completion last September meant we were yet again first to market, setting out a roadmap for the renewables industry as a whole.

“Following the success of Clayhill we now have four similar sites planned and a healthy energy storage pipeline, which is set to exceed 380MW by 2020.”

At the awards, Anesco also ranked highly for Solar Contractor of the Year and was named runner up for ECO Funding Provider of the Year.

This was the third year of the National Energy Efficiency Awards which seek to recognise excellence in the energy efficiency sector.