ALMOST 900 solar panels could be installed on a Queensbury hillside to help power a neighbouring factory.

Parkinson Spencer Refractories in Holmfield, which provides products to the glass industry, has submitted the application for an array of 880 panels laid out in 12 rows on a hillside off Roper Lane.

Although the site has a Halifax address, it falls within the Bradford Council area and the Queensbury ward.

Last month, the company was granted planning permission for two 42 metre tall wind turbines on the same site, and now an application has been submitted for a 220kwp photovoltaic solar ground array.

The company says the energy created from the turbines and panels will be used to power the factory, with any remainder being sold to the National Grid.

The panels would be installed by the Freewatt Renewable Energy Company, and the company's planning application states the panels will be installed at the most "inconspicuous" areas of the site possible.

The planning application describes the site as being "unkempt vacant grass land" lying in a landscape of wind turbines and electrical pylons.

It adds: "The proposed solar panels will add to the renewable energy created by the business and along with the 120kw created by the wind turbines the site overall will now create approximately 340kw of renewable energy to offset the electrical demands of the site."

Justifying building the panels on a rural area, the application adds: "The countryside is not a rural theme park to enjoy from our car, it is entirely manufactured; fields and hedges are man-made structures designed as a work place was our food is produced.

"This tightly managed resource has always changed. As we pass from the industrial revolution to its post-industrial equivalent, we need to reassess how we use our landscape for energy production as well as for food, amenities and occasionally for its beauty. Renewable energy is now part of this and provides sustainable energy. PV Panels are a great alternative to more coal fired power stations, wind turbines or even more nuclear power station perhaps."

Councillor Michael Walls (Con, Queensbury) said: "It isn't a very prominent site for people in Queensbury. I am a bit concerned about large scale plans for things like this or wind farms. They sound like a good idea to start with but are now sprouting up everywhere.

"The Council will have to look carefully at this application to see judge its impact on the landscape and what the benefits will be. If it gets approved then this could be the first of many we see submitted."

A decision on the application is due to be made in June.