WORK has begun on building the country’s first jointly-owned solar farm near Swindon which could pave the way for more similar projects.

The 9.1MW centre at Braydon Farm has been developed by Public Power Solutions, a company entirely owned by Swindon Borough Council. It will be operated by a subsidiary of Wiltshire Wildlife.

It will now be operated as a split ownership project by Wiltshire Wildlife Community Energy, whose shareholders own 5 MW, with the remaining 4.1 MW in private ownership.

Earlier this year, WWCE ran a campaign encouraging members of the public to buy shares in the solar farm in return for a slice of the profit the farm will generate when it is up and running.

James Owen, Public Power Solutions’ commercial director, said: “This is a perfect example of a shared ownership solar project – with the private and public sector and local community all working together successfully to help meet local and national renewable energy targets and cut carbon emissions, as well as achieving great local financial and ecological benefits.”

Construction began this month and the 5MW community-owned part of the site is expected to be connected to the grid by January 2016. It will generate enough electricity to supply the equivalent of 1,400 typical homes and save more than 2,500 tonnes of carbon a year.

The council is committed to having every home powered by renewable energy by 2020 and has given permission to many solar projects to achieve this.

Public Power Solutions has now developed over 65MW of ground-mounted solar in Swindon and nearby, and is rolling out its expertise and experience to help other public sector organisations who want to make the most of their renewable energy assets.

James said: “Solar should be a no-brainer for local authorities, helping them generate revenue through rent, business rates and investment opportunities, while saving taxpayers’ money on council energy bills.”

The Braydon Farm scheme will generate a community fund of more than £2 million to support the work of the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust and be reinvested in other community projects over the 25-year lifetime of the project.