North Somerset Council part of £230 million solar investment
The deal will see investment in 11 already operational solar farms across the southwest region, as part of a commitment from the Council to help tackle climate change and support the provision of renewable energy to the national grid.
Locations for the sites include Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Devon, Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire.
Avon Pension Fund is North Somerset Council’s pension provider and manages its funds, as well as those of other large local authorities, providing pensions for over 135,000 members across their catchment area.
Pension fund members include employees of local unitary councils, universities, academies, town and parish councils, housing associations and charities.
APF have invested in the solar projects as part of a with six other Local Government Pension Scheme funds that include funds from Cornwall, Devon, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire.
Together they serve over 550,000 pension scheme members and have assets approaching £23 billion.
The deal for the solar farms involves Toucan Energy’s UK solar portfolio being majority acquired by Schroders Greencoat, the specialist renewables manager of Schroders Capital.
A significant portion of the Toucan portfolio is being acquired by the six LGPS schemes through Schroders Greencoat’s Wessex Gardens Limited Partnership, an arrangement set up in 2023 to manage these types of locally focused renewable energy investments.
Between them the six LGPS Funds will invest £230 million in the Wessex Gardens Limited Partnership into the solar deal, as part of a wider £330m commitment to the project.
Councillor Shaun Stephenson-McGall, Vice Chair of the Avon Pension Fund Committee, said: “Climate change is a huge issue and we all must play our part in protecting our planet for future generations.
“I was delighted that our pension fund recently announced that we were bringing forward the date when our investments would achieve net zero emissions to 2045.
“This latest investment is part of our plan for meeting that goal.
“This investment, in collaboration with other partner funds from the south-west, demonstrates our commitment to tackling climate change and also investing in the local area.”
The 11 solar assets locations are: Grange Farm, South Gloucestershire; Patchway, Bristol; Mendip Hills, Bath; Dunkeswell Airfield, Devon; Manor Farm, Gloucestershire; Wendlebury, Ofordshire; Trowle Common, Wiltshire; Wroughton Airfield Solar Park, Wiltshire; Bentham, Wiltshire; Long Newnton, Wiltshire/Gloucestershire border.
