Denmark’s planning appeals board has halted plans for what would have been the country’s largest solar park, after Jammerbugt Kommune failed to assess the project’s impact on protected otters in Store Vildmose.
The decision by Planklagenævnet stops the plan for a solar park of more than 800 hectares in Store Vildmose in North Jutland. The project, known as Energipark Rendbæk Øst, was reported halted by DR on September 8, 2026.
According to DR, the board acted on a complaint from Jesper Dalgaard Krogh, a neighbor to the project area. He told the broadcaster that the plans would be so destructive to a valuable nature area that intervening was justified.
The board found that Jammerbugt Kommune had not investigated closely enough whether the solar park could affect the otter. The otter is a protected species in the nearby Natura 2000 area in Vildmosen. Traces of an otter in the area, several years old, are central to the case.
Mogens Christen Gade (V), chair of the municipality’s climate, environment and technical committee, said the municipality had made an error of judgment. As reported by DR, the former mayor said the plan had been to carry out the environmental assessment in a second stage, once the local plan was in place. Planklagenævnet took a different view.
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New project not ruled out
If the large solar park is to be built, an entirely new project is required and the whole planning process must start over. Gade did not rule out that this will happen. He noted that the board has not said a solar park is impossible because otter tracks were seen in 2017.
Per Gade, the municipality must now consider how a possible otter population can coexist with a solar park. He referred to the developer BioCirc, or others, potentially coming forward with a new proposal.
The wind element of the project is continuing. DR reports that 15 wind turbines are currently being erected in the area as part of Energipark Rendbæk Øst, while the solar component is on hold.
The project has drawn local opposition for some time. In September 2025, protesting residents gathered when the municipal council in Jammerbugt Kommune decided to move ahead with the energy park, which included the solar park. Gade, then mayor, spoke with the demonstrators outside the meeting, according to DR.
Planklagenævnet is the independent national body that handles complaints about municipal decisions under Danish planning law. Its ruling concerns the planning process in this case, not a general ban on solar parks in the area.
