RESIDENTS say they are again being “threatened” with plans for a controversial a £15million electric vehicle charging station near Frinton.

Naturalis Energy Developments’ bid to build an eco-hub on 54 acres of farmland off Halstead Road, between Kirby Cross and Kirby-le-Soken, were rejected last year.

The blueprints, which included a vehicle charging station, café, substation, battery containers, and a grid connection point on a smaller piece of land to the west of the road, were turned down by the Tending Council’s planning committee.

But the applicant has now launched an appeal against the decision.

It said the serious consequences of climate change are already being experienced in the UK and to reach reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, a rapid deployment of renewables has a critical role to play

“The Government intends a five-fold increase in solar by 2035 and recognises that ground-mounted solar is one of the cheapest means of electricity generation and is readily deployable at scale,” it added.

The ambitious project had been a cause for concern among residents ever since the plans were first unveiled, with some residents claiming it would “turn the green gap into a black gap”, with security fences that would change the character of this area into that akin to a “high security prison”.

Chris Heal, of Kirby-le-Soken, said: “Once again, residents of Kirby-le-Soken and Kirby Cross are being threatened with the proposal to build an eco-hub on fields between the two villages.

“Last year, Tendring Council rejected the proposal but Naturalis, the developers, have appealed.

“The appeal means Tendring Council’s decision may be over-ruled if the Government Inspectorate in Bristol decide to give the go-ahead - so much for localism.”

A report, on behalf of Naturalis Energy Developments, said the three main issues with the plan were that the form, scale, siting and location of the proposed development would have a detrimental impact on the open and undeveloped character of the area, that itwould result in the coalescence of settlements and fail to protect their separate identities, and that the proposed development would reduce, interrupt and remove the visual break between the settlements for a significant period of time.

It added: “Solar schemes are time-limited and in the case of the Halstead Road appeal proposals it would be for a period of 40 years. At the end of the permission, the project would be decommissioned and there would be no residual adverse landscape effects.”

“Even if the Inspector were to conclude that there would be some conflict with [Tendring Council’s] Development Plan, it is proposed that the planning considerations and public benefits attract significant weight that would outweigh any such conflict.”

Speaking at the planning committee last year, councillor Peter Harris said: “The energy crisis is not reason enough that reason of these areas should suffer and we steamroller a solar farm there.”