The Administrative Litigation Chamber of the TSJA dismisses the appeal against the modification of the PGOU regulating solar plants. The ruling, dated September 11, 2026, imposes costs on the appellant and confirms the protection of the landscape.
The Superior Court of Justice of Andalusia has sided with the City Council of Alcalá de Guadaíra in the dispute over the regulation of photovoltaic plants. The Administrative Litigation Chamber, Section Two, has fully dismissed the appeal filed against the modification of the General Urban Planning Plan (PGOU) approved to regulate the implementation of solar energy generation facilities within the municipal area.
The ruling, dated September 11, 2026, confirms the validity of the urban modification and orders the appellant to pay costs. The decision supports the actions of the Urban Planning Department, which has worked for years on regulations that allow for the development of renewable energy while protecting the territory and landscape.
The court acknowledges that the City Council has the authority to regulate land use and that urban planning can establish conditions and locations for specific uses. The resolution emphasizes that this planning is carried out in defense of the public interest and has been developed with technical criteria, transparency, motivation, and the appropriate administrative procedure to ensure legal certainty.
"Urban planning is developed within a framework of defending the public interest, and has been developed based on technical criteria, with transparency, motivation, justification, and with the appropriate administrative procedure to provide legal certainty"
One of the central points of the ruling is that the modification of the PGOU does not completely prevent the development of photovoltaic energy but regulates its location. In fact, the resolution indicates that nearly half of the non-urbanizable land in the municipality remains available for these installations, specifically 52.07%, and concludes that it has not been proven that this area is insufficient to guarantee significant electricity production.
The ruling highlights that the municipal action aimed to preserve the landscape values of Alcalá de Guadaíra, protecting areas such as the Guadaíra valley, the surroundings of the natural monument, and the escarpment of the alcores. The court considers that uncontrolled and dispersed installation of photovoltaic plants is incompatible with balanced landscape protection, and concludes that the municipal regulation is not disproportionate in relation to the pursued objective.
The ruling also endorses the environmental procedure followed for the modification of the PGOU. The TSJA considers that the strategic environmental assessment considered alternatives and that these were evaluated taking into account the landscape, land uses, biodiversity, water, and climate change. It also notes that the modification does not substantially alter the territorial model of Alcalá de Guadaíra, as it does not change land classification, municipal design, communication networks, or services and infrastructural needs.
For the Government Team of the Alcalá de Guadaíra City Council, this ruling supports the work carried out over the years by the Urban Planning Department to update municipal planning and anticipate the challenges of renewable energy expansion. Municipal sources emphasize that the ruling values a model of responsible urbanism that is environmentally conscious and forward-looking.
The judicial resolution insists on the need for the development of clean energies to occur in an orderly manner, compatible with landscape protection and with territorial planning that takes into account the general interest of the municipality. The Urban Planning Department will continue to work to ensure that the new General Plan of Alcalá de Guadaíra advances with rigorous planning that facilitates economic and energy development while preserving its environmental, landscape, and territorial values.
With this ruling, the Alcalá de Guadaíra City Council consolidates a regulation affecting owners of non-urbanizable land and companies interested in installing photovoltaic plants in the municipality. The regulation will remain in force, and new installations must comply with the areas permitted by urban planning.
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