DELIVERIES of thousands of solar panels to Tonedale Farm at Rockwell Green has been causing traffic hold-ups, it has been claimed.

Foreign drivers of articulated lorries have lost their way around Wellington and Rockwell Green looking for the site, says John Woolmer of Westford in Wellington.

They had caused traffic delays, notably backing up out of Westford onto the railway bridge to then turn right into Lower Westford. He said he had seen one trying to negotiate Corams Lane and another Burgess Hill. He added: “The same haulage company seems to be involved and I have seen its direction sheet, which is little more than a Google map.”

Nick Southcott, who owns Tonedale Farm, said 22 loads of solar panels would be delivered and 19 had arrived – the rest were expected at the end of last week. The panels were coming from Frankfurt in Germany and being installed by Spanish firm Gamma Energy in a nine-week project.

He added: “Affecting the residents is the last thing we want to do but we’re almost there. We have provided full instructions, post codes, directions but obviously it’s gone through the site manager, transport manager and somehow these instructions don’t get passed on. We don’t know when the lorries are coming, unfortunately, but we see them out.”

He had been told when the planning application went in that articulated vehicles would not be used, just four-axle lorries. But the firm in Germany had refused to use those kind of vehicles – which would have meant more trips – and would not offload them on route to smaller lorries to make delivery easier.

More than 40 workers had at one point being involved in installing the 19,300 panels, which will produce about 5MW of energy – enough for 1,500 homes, Mr Southcott said. The land has not been used to grow crops and he hopes sheep will continue to be able to graze on it.

He added: “We have installed the solar farm because farming is in such a poor state – we get paid below cost price for milk. Farmers have to do something to survive – that’s why we have done it. It’s a regular income for us for its 26-year lifespan and we have to secure the future of the farm.”

The solar farm had to be ‘plugged in’ to the network by December 12 and small lorries would take the site buildings away.