London-based solar developer, Lightsource Renewable Energy, has announced a recruitment drive for its newly-launched operations and management division.  

The developer is looking to fill 15 full-time positions initially, with the maintenance roles based near Lightsource’s operational solar farms.

Mark Turner, operations director at Lightsource explained: “We are kick-starting this initiative with 15 full-time positions first and many more will follow. These new specialist maintenance jobs are created in the towns or villages near our operational solar farms and therefore benefit the local economy directly. We're currently looking for experienced electricians with a real passion for renewable energy and the desire to be part of a great British success story.”

Turner outlined the company’s plans for the future: “By March 2014, we will have to manage over 4,000 acres of land responsibly and sustainably. That’s twice as much land as surrounds Blenheim Palace. You could think of us as a new breed of tenant farmer, and the biggest challenge for us is that our land is spread across the entire width and breadth of the UK.”

As a sign of the company’s commitment to its land management aspirations, Lightsource recently joined the National Farmers Union (NFU) in order to help ensure that its land holdings are managed to best benefit the rural economy.

Turner added: “We have great aspirations for the future and we are seeking guidance from professional bodies like the NFU to ensure we do things right. We want to show local communities that solar farms have huge tangible benefits aside from the clean electricity they generate. Some of our plans include our own livestock like sheep and also harvesting wild flower seed as there is a great shortage of indigenous seed in the UK. All these activities require expertise, we will have to hire more local people to make this happen and this announcement of 15 jobs is only the beginning.”

The company is the largest operator of solar farms in the UK and claims to have created over 150 full time jobs in the UK over the last three years.

Lightsource is looking to recruit at the following locations:

Isle of Wight

St Austell

Truro

Totnes

Torquay

Barnstaple

North Devon

Cardiff

Bath

Southampton

Folkestone

Ashford, Kent

Canterbury

Chelmsford

Nottingham

Newark