Environmental Minister Glenn Blakeney praised the official opening of a group of environmentally friendly homes, saying he hoped it was the start of a new trend.

Mr. Blakeney, who attended the ribbon cutting for the Greenview Villas yesterday, praised the development saying: "I definitely hope to see more of this moving forward.

"I think it's a great example of the commitment of the people of Bermuda to green technology.

"It's really a pleasure as Minister to see people putting forward these types of initiatives."

Last year, the Energy Act 2009 was passed into law, which then Energy Minister Terry Lister described as a building block towards an Energy White Paper.

In November's throne speech, the Government said that paper would be submitted during this legislative session, coupled with incentives for Bermudians to adopt green power.

Mr. Blakeney said: "The Ministry is right now working on developing a framework to help ensure quality control for green energy, particularly with regards to solar power."

Jamie Smith of Solar Bermuda Ltd, who developed the site, said that the homes said the project was the first of it's kind, and had already proven successful.

Mr. Smith said: "The fact that all nine units were presold is an indicator that there are Bermudians who already buy into the fact that it is possible to live comfortably using 100 percent alternative energy."

"In fact, the first residents lived off-grid, meaning not attached to Belco's electricity network, for ten days."

Each of the nine units on the site have a solar water heater and several solar panels, which Mr. Smith said could allow the residents to save around $200 a month on their power bills, and retain their power during blackouts.

During the ribbon cutting at the Warwick site, Mr. Smith said he intended to continue building environmentally friendly homes, with work expected to begin on a Radnor Road site soon.

"We will continue to seek out opportunities to develop other like residential communities," he said. "This is much more than a condo development for me, it's a labour of love."