Valle del Sol neighbors appeal solar plant approval
- Valle del Sol–El Boter residents in Mutxamel have formally appealed the Generalitat’s approval of the FV Valledelsol solar plant and asked for works to stop. - The fight centers on whether April’s regional authorization can trigger municipal licences now, with neighbors arguing the file stays open after their May 4 appeal. - It matters because the project is large, close to homes, and sits inside a wider local clash over where renewable plants should go.
A solar plant in Mutxamel just cleared a big regional hurdle. But turns out that does not mean the fight is over. Neighbors in Valle del Sol are now trying to stop the project before any municipal licence or construction step turns that approval into something real. The dispute is not about whether solar power should exist. It is about where this one goes, how it was processed, and whether the final version got proper public scrutiny. ### What changed this week? The immediate news is the appeal. The Asociación de Vecinos Valle del Sol–El Boter filed a recurso de alzada against the Generalitat Valenciana’s authorization for the FV Valledelsol plant, and it also asked for precautionary suspension so nothing moves while the challenge is pending, but it was published on May 6. ### What exactly is this project? FV Valledelsol is not a small rooftop scheme. The environmental file describes a plant in Mutxamel promoted by Tierra de Sol Project SL with roughly 27.7 MW of nominal power, spread across 49.29 hectares of linked parcels, with 39,676 bifacial solar modules. The installation is tied to its own substation and evacuation infrastructure, which is one reason the case has become so contentious. ### Why are neighbors saying the approval is not settled? Basically, they are arguing that an authorization is not the same thing as an untouchable green light. Their position is that the appeal keeps the administrative fight alive, so the town hall should not act as if the file were final. They also want the authorization revoked or the process rolled back so the definitive project can go back through public information. ### What are the legal complaints? The neighbors’ argument has three main parts. First, they say key technical material was added in March and April 2026 without real public participation, which they frame as procedural unfairness. Second, they say the 2024 environmental declaration no longer matches the project split across files in a way that makes the total impact harder to judge. ### Why does location matter so much here? Because this is not empty middle-of-nowhere land. The municipal government had already come out against the plant in March 2024, saying it would sit next to residential urban land, create major visual impact, and affect protected or sensitive areas around Bec de l’Àguila, say, about 20 to 30 meters. ### Didn’t the project already go through public review? Yes — more than once, which is part of why the paperwork is messy. The original project went to public information in January 2024. After substantial modifications, a new public-information phase opened again in February 2026, including requests for prior authorization, cutting some deadlines in half. That speeds things up, but it also raises the stakes if people think later changes were not aired clearly enough. ### So what happens next? The key question now is whether Mutxamel holds the line on licences while the appeal is unresolved. The Generalitat has already listed Valledelsol among authorized renewable installations in Alicante, so the promoter has a significant win on paper. But a live appeal can still slow execution, especially if the town hall decides to wait rather than risk authorizing steps that later get challenged. ### Bottom line? This is the familiar renewable-energy bottleneck in one very specific place. The region wants solar built fast. Residents and the town hall are saying fast is not the same as properly sited — and for FV Valledelsol, that argument is now headed into the next legal round.
