A SOLAR farm near a Hampshire town is entering its second phase of development.

Romsey Solar Farm, located in a field south of Lee Drove, near Romsey, will be expanded to power 4,400 homes in the area once the upgrade is completed.

At the Romsey Town Planning Committee on October 3, councillors were given a presentation by Ben Packham and Marlies Koutstaal, employees of Bluefield, the "solar income fund" in charge of the site's expansion, who revealed the timeline for construction.

READ MORE: New solar farm approved by Winchester planning committee

Bluefield has invested over £2,000,000,000 in solar farms across the UK (Image: Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA)

Bristol-based Bluefield has invested over £2bn in solar farms across the UK, and completed the first phase of the Romsey Solar Farm in 2015.

While the panels are set to be delivered to the site this month, 90 per cent of the framing for the units has already been installed. The panels will be mounted in November and the entire solar farm, located to the north of Lee Drove, should be completed by Spring 2025.

In addition, the fund has taken precautions to protect local wildlife, including the installation of birdboxes and the planting of wildflowers.

Romsey town councillors seemed generally appreciative of the plans, although Councillor Ian Culley raised concerns over whether it is wise to put solar panels on prime farmland.

He also reminded the representatives that Bluefield had said it would put livestock, specifically sheep, on the site after the first phase of construction was completed almost ten years ago.

Cllr Culley pointed out that nothing has been done about this promise to date.

In reply, Mr Packham said there were no plans as of yet to have livestock grazing at Romsey Solar Farm, a practice known in the industry as "solar grazing".