What is proposed for our area?
A starting point for understanding the Blackthorn application, its location and the plans submitted to Galway County Council.
Check the live Council record before sending your submission.
Check the official recordThe facts at a glance
- Applicant
- Blackthorn Solar Farm LimitedPlanning Statement · document 2746201 (PDF)
- Application
- 26/61567 · Galway County CouncilOfficial application documents
- Overall development area
- Approximately 93 hectaresOfficial application documents
- Layout
- Two land parcels near Lackagh and KnockdoeSubmitted plans and drawings
- Operating life requested
- 40 yearsPlanning Statement, section 5.13 (PDF)
- Permission period requested
- Ten years to implement the developmentPlanning Statement, section 5.13 (PDF)
What would be built?
The application includes ground-mounted solar panels, associated electrical equipment, access tracks, fencing and cabling.
The overall development area includes more than the panels themselves. It should not be read as 93 hectares covered by panels.
Read the Planning Statement (PDF)What do ten years and 40 years mean?
The applicant seeks a ten-year permission period to put the development in place, allowing time for grid arrangements, procurement and construction. Separately, it seeks permission to operate the solar farm for 40 years. These are requested periods; they have not been granted. The ten-year request does not mean the solar farm would operate for only ten years. Read section 5.13, printed page 44 (PDF page 48).
Where is the proposal?
See the two proposed land parcels, covering approximately 93 hectares in total, beside local roads and amenities. Use the numbered key to find the school, church, walking trail and proposed substation, and to distinguish vehicle entrances from the underground cable corridor.
- 1N83 entrance
Northern parcel - 2L21332 entrance
Southern parcel - 3Scoil Bhríde
Lackagh National School - 4Lackagh Church
Our Lady of Knock - 5GAA walking trail
Beside the northern parcel - 6Proposed 110 kV substation
Separate application required - CUnderground cable corridor
Between parcels, via the R354
Numbers identify locations, with short leader lines pointing to them. The dashed brown line highlights the interconnecting cable corridor; it does not show a vehicle route. The applicant also provides temporary cable-construction access drawings at the R354.
Read the access, cable and landmark sources
The application identifies the N83 and L21332 entrances for construction and operation. Delivery routes are shown in the traffic report, PDF pages 13–14. Appendix A shows the entrances and cable-construction access, PDF pages 49–52.
The electrical layout shows the cable route and proposed substation (PDF). Substation and grid-connection details in this drawing are supplied for information; they are outside the Council solar-farm application. The highlighted corridor is an orientation aid, not a survey or a drawing of every cable.
The church and school are labelled on the original Council base map. Sport Ireland’s walking-trail map shows the trail beside the northern parcel.
Red outline: subject lands. Blue outline: lands under control. Black crosses: site notice locations. Dotted rectangles: the areas covered by the two detailed sheets.
The application documents
The Council’s official file contains the applicant’s Planning Statement, drawings and supporting reports.
View the complete applicationWhere is the application in the planning process?
At our last check, Galway County Council listed this as a NEW APPLICATION. Check the live record before sending your submission.
- Application received — 16 September 2026. Galway County Council’s register records receipt and validation on this date.
- Have your say by 20 October 2026. The submission guide explains the closing times, fee and official routes.
- Assessment and decision. The Council considers the application and submissions. Its register currently gives 10 November 2026 as the decision-due date. This is not a promise of a decision on that day or an indication of approval; check the record for changes and notices.
- After a decision. A Council decision may be appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála. Its appeal guide explains eligibility and the four-week period beginning on the decision date. Keep your Council submission acknowledgement.
The substation has a separate planning process
The applicant proposes a 110 kV substation, two interface towers and a grid connection as part of the wider Blackthorn project. Its Planning Statement says these are outside the solar-farm application to Galway County Council and require a separate application to An Coimisiún Pleanála. Their appearance in the solar-farm reports does not mean this Council application would approve them.
The proposed substation is shown beside the GAA walking trail. Section 1.2 of the Planning Statement (PDF) explains the two applications; the electrical layout (PDF) shows the wider project.
A separate application would have its own public notice, documents and submission arrangements. The solar farm’s 20 October deadline is not a substation deadline. See the Commission’s guide to the process before a strategic-infrastructure application.
What does RED III mean here?
RED III is the EU’s revised Renewable Energy Directive. Ireland’s implementing regulations introduce specific completeness checks and decision timelines for renewable-energy applications. Blackthorn’s application notice says the development is covered by these provisions and refers to section 34D, the completeness-check process.
A completeness check is a step in processing an application, not planning permission. The Council’s current register is the source for Blackthorn’s submission date and status. Read the Council’s RED III explanation and register.
A nearby planning decision
The Council refused Bellville Solar Farm on 30 September. It is a separate proposal with its own evidence and circumstances. Read the eleven grounds in the Bellville decision; they do not determine Blackthorn’s outcome.