Expert Advice on Solar Farms

Most of my clients in the agricultural sector are usually very busy in growing and cultivating their crops. The last few years have seen a change of emphasis and many of the projects in hand are nothing to do with farming itself but a wide range of diversification. Commercial wind farms occupy much attention as well as mineral extraction from the fertile Trent Valley (not to mention the potash extraction in Yorkshire!). However the past few months have seen the phenomenon of the Solar farm or park. Most will be familiar with the sight of solar panels on domestic roofs but this is a completely different proposition. The principle involves placing hundreds of solar panels on substantial fields and reaping the benefit of the electricity which they generate from the sun. It is easy to spot the immediate conflict between the benefits of renewable energy and a perhaps less than attractive use of otherwise fertile land. The sudden rash of proposals for solar farms is not prompted by philanthropy but, rather, the hard-nosed economic benefits which are currently perceived to be available. This is because the government is prepared to offer significant subsidies by way of “Feed in Tariffs” which were launched earlier last year. Given the country’s current parlous economic situation, there were many who raised their eyes at these apparently generous subsidies and it is no surprise at all that the Secretary of State has brought forward the first review of the Feed in Tariffs by a year and this will now take place during 2011. He has also threatened to rein back on some of the larger solar farms as it is clear that they may well take a disproportionate amount of the Feed in Tariffs available for renewable energy.

 

Much of the feeding frenzy in relation to solar farms has been initiated by corporate financiers who have been quick to spot an opportunity. However, the capital costs of installation are significant and I suspect that their enthusiasm for such schemes will diminish once it becomes apparent that the level of the government’s generosity is likely to diminish. It is a marketplace which is moving very quickly and I know that there are many farmers in Lincolnshire and beyond who are studying the figures and rates of return very carefully.

 

It has always been the case in English law that pre-nuptial agreements have not been recognised as they were traditionally held to be against public policy. The drift of this argument was that one shouldn’t plan, in effect, for a marriage to fail. Gradually, though, the strength of pre-nuptial agreements has been gathering pace and it seems, at long last, that a case called Radmacher in the Supreme Court has established the principle that the Courts will take note of pre-nuptial agreements providing there has been a full understanding of the agreement at the outset with proper disclosure and advice. Pre-nuptial agreements have gained favour in modern times because of second marriages and instances where one partner has taken significant capital assets into the marriage without reciprocation. This has often been the case with the farming community and farmers of a certain age often tell me that they are reluctant to pass assets onto the next generation just in case of divorce or marital breakdown. My colleagues in our family department are now regularly advising on the terms of pre-nuptial agreements as they are seen to preserve and protect inherited family assets from the effect of subsequent breakdown. Planning to fail? Maybe, but many who feel vulnerable and exposed in this respect might well take the view that a pre-nuptial agreement is a wise and sensible precaution to take before embarking on marriage.