 "Peter Holmes giving the thumbs-up to his EV driving experience" Feedback from early test drives in our loaned Electric Vehicle At the BSFG meeting in May last year, Russell Klose of Kilowatt Cars demonstrated and spoke on EVs, and offered BSFG a loan vehicle for members and friends to be able to experience an EV through an "extended test drive". David and Kevin followed up with Russell and picked up his Nissan Leaf in January to bring to Benalla. So far we have had around half a dozen members and friends try the car, some taking it for an overnight test and experiencing the home charging task. The list of interested people is around 20 and growing, so if you're interested you will need to get in quick before it is returned to Russell in the next couple of weeks!
A quick sample of comments so far from our testers include:- On the positive side:
A few downsides were noted:
The model Leaf supplied by Russell is the one with a 40 kwh battery, with a nominal range of 240 km. There is also a model with a 60 kwh size battery with a commensurately larger range. Range is greatly affected by speed, terrain and (less so) use of aircon, lights and other features. For those interested, V2L is a feature some EVs have which allows the vehicle battery to be used to power the home. Since a Tesla home battery is around 11-12 kwh, the advantage of having an EV with this capability is obvious, and examples occurred in the recent Qld flood power blackouts where EVs were used to power home-based medical devices (reports in The Age and Guardian)!" David Blore 0407885410
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Have you heard about the Footprint Project?' The mission of this tiny US nonprofit is to 'provide cleaner energy for communities in crisis'. Footprint's 'footprint' is visible after earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornados — and even in Ukraine — as it brings solar microgrid power to those in need. The portable microgrids developed by the Footprint Project proved their worth during Hurricane Ida in August 2021 and are now supported by Schneider Electric and Microsoft. The background to the development of the Footprint project and later partnership between Footprint, Schneider Electric and Microsoft is spelt out in an article on the Microsoft website 'A unique form of hope - Tiny Nonprofit Footprint Project is bringing cleaner energy to disaster response'. The Footprint Project made the Time 'Best Inventions List' of 2022 - Footprint Project Microgrids: The 200 Best Inventions of 2022 leading to an excellent article, 'Mobile microgrids by Footprint and Schneider make Time’s best inventions list', the reading of which inspired this post! With a well established branch in Sydney Road, Benalla, Schneider Electric's logo/motto is Life is On, the O has vertical slash, as per symbol for on/off switch. The Schneider Electric (Australia) website has a list or downloadable reports in pdf including 'Operating, Maintaining and Optimizing Microgrids' (2023) 'Resilient - Delivering exceptional resilience for extraordinary health care" (2022). There's a pdf download 'Schneider Electric - Our New World of Energy' Interested in finding out more about microgrids generally? Microgrid Knowledge is a website full of resources. Reference manuals in downloadable pdf format include 'Handbook on Microgrids for Power Quality and Connectivity' published by the Asian Development Bank; and the 'Microgrid Conceptual Design Handbook 2022' a publication of the Energy Transitions Project, US Department of Energy. Malcolm McCullough's book 'Downtime on the Microgrid: Architecture, Electricity and Smart City Islands' published in 2020 by MIT and subtitled 'a human-centered account of why the future of electricity is local', is my next port of call. It's frustrating that we don't seem to be making progress with microgrids in Australia. But some people are! Peter Maddock 17 January 2024 Footnote - a quick search for 'mobile microgrids' in Australia came up with 'hybrid' products -
You may remember that in March this year, Russell Klose from Kilowatt cars visited Benalla and gave a presentation to BSFG about Electric Vehicles.
Renewable Energy Benalla (part of BSFG) will be taking up Russell's kind offer of an Electric Vehicle on loan in the new year. This will allow members to have an extended test drive, see how and if an Electric Vehicle could suit your needs, and directly address questions you may have such as range and charging. The car (a 40 kWh Nissan Leaf) will be on loan for a week or two in January (exact times to be confirmed) and will be garaged in Benalla for that time. If you are interested in having an extended test drive, please email David Blore (BSFG Vice President) at [email protected] for bookings. Intending borrowers will also need to provide licence details and a phone number for making arrangements. Judy Schwarzman Secretary, BSFG Notes of Meeting With Indigo Power, at Beechworth
Present: Donald Mace (Indigo Power), Kevin Smith & David Blore (Renewable Energy Benalla) Date: Tuesday 20 June 2023 The meeting was arranged as a follow-up to Donald's presentation to the BSFG AGM on 25 May 2023. Donald outlined current work and involvement of Indigo Power (IP) on community energy projects especially community energy batteries. He advised that IP had been successful in the first round of Commonwealth funding for a community battery for Yarra Junction. He also outlined upcoming government grants for community batteries, noting that IP was developing submissions for a number of projects (10-12 bids), with strong business cases for each. He commented that the work required to develop a strong business case and submission was extensive; not many community groups were able to address the detailed submission requirements from his experience. (A message for us in regard to the effort required.) Donald also outlined possibilities being considered under Round 3 of the Victorian Neighbourhood Battery grant program, including a possible community battery in Benalla. BRCC is part of the suite of possibilities being considered as a member of the "Central Victoria Greenhouse Alliance" a grouping of Councils including existing groups such as the "Goulburn Murray Greenhouse Alliance". The Benalla project could entail a community behind-the-meter battery (with/without EV charging) at the former Civic Centre, now the Library. Presumably this battery would be charged from existing solar panels on the Library - and the Senior Citizens (?). We pointed out that the Library only has limited evening operating hours but the Senior Cits is used on a number of nights, thus gaining direct benefits from the battery. We discussed possibilities for inclusion of EV charging: Donald advised that these units (at $60,000 - 70,000 to install, depending on charging rate) could be added at cost. Both the siting of any EV chargers and the battery would be subject to finding a suitable flood-free site (i.e. not under the Library!). Chargers are usually located in nose-in car parking spaces: we mentioned the possibility of installing a couple of (double) chargers along Fawkner Drive in close proximity to the battery at the Library. Donald didn't think this was impossible. The location would also be better than say Bridge Street where legitimate objections might be raised to the length of parking required for a charge. Don suggested that a possible project for REB would be to seek funding for provision of EV charger stations. He suggested several funding sources including:
Another action by REB could be a letter of support for the proposal for a community battery. Don will liaise with David Blore when this would be desirable. We also discussed other project options including Indigo Power's proposal for changing household power usage for hot water from the old off-peak night rate model to midday to take advantage of the period of maximum solar generation. Typical cost for such a change is $500/household. Indigo Power have put a submission to our local Member Helen Haines for a pilot project. Kevin Smith and David Blore briefly discussed on the way home the possibility of REB subsidising installations In Benalla with a fixed payback process on a monthly or quarterly basis (say a subsidy of 50% of cost, paid back over five quarters at $50/quarter). Would be worth following up further with Indigo Power and Helen Haines as the site of a trial project. Other matters:- Donald advised that a tariff increase of up to 25% has been advised by the state regulator and will happen on 1 August for power supply . Indigo Power, conscious of their community obligations, will only increase their rate by 12%. IP will also increase their solar feed-in tariff by 7.2%. Donald confirmed that the new peak period for power charges is from 3 pm to 9 pm nightly. Brief discussion on heat pumps - nothing conclusive for us. We briefly discussed other power generation options including pumped hydro (not many options close to Benalla!) and wind. Kevin mentioned the wind resource in the Nillahcootie locality, where wind through the gap in the ranges to the east and west of the narrow valley are typically strong northerlies or southerlies. Donald referred to Hepburn as a potential model of how it might be done here - again with a battery incorporated. Actions:-
David Blore A very informative seminar was hosted last week by Renewable Energy Benalla (part of BSFG) at the Benalla Uniting Church on solar panel and home battery installations. Brad Foletta, Director of Solargain Wangaratta, spoke on Solargain's experience in solar panels, batteries and solar hot water systems, with around 3000 installations in the North East over the past nine years since Solargain was established. Brad and more than half his staff are Benalla locals, so the company knows the local area intimately. Brad made mention of noted engineer and thinker, Saul Griffith, and his mantra “Electrify Everything” for combatting the use of fossil fuels for power and addressing climate change, as one of the key drivers for Solargain’s work across our region. Brad spoke about the current state of solar, developments in output and reliability of solar panels in the last decade or so, and demonstrated the significant cost savings on power bills for households who install panels (especially with the various subsidies available to offset installation costs). He then expanded on the related topic of home batteries. Brad spoke about; adding batteries to an existing system and how this works; the types of systems now available (self-consumption, partial backup, full backup and full off-grid systems); warranties and monitoring, and outlined the subsidies available for home battery installations. Brad highlighted a couple of key messages to the attentive audience:-
Brad and his team fielded many questions from the attendees, who appreciated his clear and knowledgeable presentation on a complex topic. David Blore Renewable Energy Benalla An Action Group of Benalla Sustainable Future Group 0407885410 BSFG members and supporters are invited to a Community Forum about Solar Panels and Home Batteries at 7:30pm, on Thursday 27th April at the Benalla Uniting Church.  Brad Foletta from Solargain Wangaratta will be speaking to inform us of the latest developments and state of play in this area, covering these aspects:
Attendance is free, but for catering purposes, please book your place using the Trybooking link https://www.trybooking.com/CHLUE We look forward to seeing you at this forum which promises to be very informative. Judy Schwarzman Secretary, BSFG On Thursday 30th March Russell Klose from Kilowatt Cars (Yackandandah based supplier of used Nissan Leaf Electric Vehicles (EV's) from Japan) presented a question, answer and drive session to 'a packed house' in the Benalla Uniting Church's general purpose meeting room.
The session started 5.30pm with a talk from Russell about Kilowatt Cars, what they are doing and why, why you should consider buying an EV, how to charge it (at home/on the road), bulk buy opportunities and the advantages of EV ownership-lower running costs, low emission driving etc. After his talk Russell made vehicles available to look at/sit in and test drive. A shared pizza dinner provided a valued opportunity to chat with others moving from contemplating to acting on the purchase of an electric vehicle. The session continued at 7.30 pm with a question-and-answer session with Russell, a great opportunity for those present to talk with someone who sells EVs, and has travelled over 25,000km in an EV around Australia. BSFG/REB members and supporters were also contacted to let them know that Russell would be speaking again at "Electrifying Agriculture in Euroa" on Thursday 13th April. Run by Farmers for Climate Action, with Solar Citizens and Euroa Environment Group. the event focused on the benefits of electric cars for farmers, as well as the future of EVs in the regions. Speakers from Farmers for Climate Action and Solar Citizens also spoke, as well as some local farmers and EV owners. One of Australia’s first electric utes, an electric farm bike, and other EVs were on site so that attendees could check out the technology for themselves. Russell Klose from Kilowatt Cars (Yackandandah based supplier of used Nissan Leaf Electric Vehicles (EV's) from Japan) will be presenting a question, answer and drive session at the Benalla Uniting Church, on Thursday 30th March.
We will start at 5.30pm with a talk from Russell on who they are, what they are doing and why, why you should consider buying an EV, how to charge it (at home/on the road), bulk buy opportunities and the advantages of EV ownership-lower running costs, low emission driving etc. After this part of the talk is finished, Russell will have vehicles available to look at/sit in and test drive. Then there will be a shared pizza dinner. A gold coin donation would be appreciated. At 7.30 pm we’ll have a question-and-answer session with Russell, a great opportunity to talk with someone who sells EVs, and has travelled over 25,000km in an EV around Australia. To book go to : https://www.trybooking.com/CGQLS Or email: [email protected] We hope you can join us. Judy Schwarzman Secretary, BSFG On Tuesday May 31st Brad Foletta from Solar Gain spoke to Landlords from Benalla about the benefits of solar for landlords.
Brad presented information about Solar rebates for rental properties from the Solar Victoria website https://www.solar.vic.gov.au/solar-rebates-rental-properties. To summarise the benefits:
Subsidies available: Small scale technology certificates (STC’s) are generated when you install a Solar PV system or Solar hot water (including heat pumps) This incentive works like a rebate giving you:
There is a further Victorian state rebate available that is administered from the Solar Homes Program (Solar Victoria) Upon being deemed eligible you can be approved for:
Victoria Energy Efficiency Certificates: A further ~$1000 of VEECS state “rebate” is available for heat pump hot water units when replacing an electric storage hot water unit in Victoria. With these Solar PV subsidies combined there is an upfront discount of almost $6000 which can take the cost of a good quality 6.6kW solar PV system on a standard type house install down from the $10k mark to just $4k. For a solar hot water, the cost of a fully installed, good quality iStore heat pump hot water unit is reduced from $4000 to just $2000 if both above mentioned rebates are taken. Download the Solar for Rentals Fact Sheet. This meeting was organised by BSFG President Peter Holmes and it was very well attended. There will be another meeting for Tenants on Tuesday June 14th from 7pm-8pm in the Fellowship Room at the Uniting Church in Carrier Street Benalla, opposite the Coles car park. Peter Maddock  As many of you know we had an excellent event at Bernard Briggs kindergarten to celebrate the installation of panels. Thank you to Simon Ruppert of the Ensign for providing such good coverage of the event in the Benalla Ensign last week! A copy is included with this post for those who don’t read the Ensign.
John Lloyd  I would like to explain how the solar panels came to be installed on Bernard Briggs Kindergarten. I am Convenor of Renewable Energy Benalla, which is an action group of Benalla Sustainable Future Group, a not-for-profit community group which actively encourages taking action on climate change. Renewable Energy Benalla seeks to encourage the uptake of renewable energy in Benalla Rural City and has initiated the Benalla Community Energy Project as one way of contributing to this. The community energy project aims to establish a donation based revolving fund to install solar panels or undertake energy efficiency upgrades on community facilities in and around Benalla. The project provides interest free loans to the selected community facilities, to fund the works required, with no upfront contribution being necessary. Loan repayments to the fund from the host site are based on the estimated savings made on energy bills. The loan repayments gradually rebuild the balance of the fund, which can then be used to make a loan to another community building. In this way the fund becomes a revolving fund. Donations from the community help rebuild the balance of the fund more quickly than relying solely on loan repayments, which enables new loans to be made to other community facilities more frequently. Following discussions with the kindergarten management group, the North East Regional PreSchool Association, Munro Ave was selected as our first project with panels installed last May. We have also been very fortunate to obtain another grant of $5000 from Winton Solar Farm which together with significant contributions from others, including some loan repayments from Munro Ave, enabled us to fund the installation of panels here, at Bernard Briggs, without the need for fund raising. The system that was installed was a 6.6kW system which will reduce electricity costs for the kindergarten by more than $1500 per year. Future projects however will require donations from the community. A local business, Rustik Café, has a donations box on the counter in which customers often donate small change. When Rustik heard about this project they decided to donate the money from this box to our project. Their first donation was $135 and they will continue to donate money collected in this way. Thank you to Rustik. I would now like to thank the people and organisations that have made major contributions to this project. First, we must once again thank Winton Solar Farm for providing us with a second Community Benefit Grant of $5000 which enabled us to fund our second project. Our thanks to Erin McPherson, who is representing Winton Solar Farm here today, I also need to thank Brad Foletta, the Manager at Solargain Wangaratta, for the significant in-kind contribution to the installation costs of the panels. Unfortunately, Brad is unable to attend today because he has contracted Covid. Blake Smith, the Marketing Manager for Solargain, is here in his place. This was a difficult job with a steep roof and very old fragile terracotta tiles, but the team from Solargain did a quality job. Without the contributions and support from these people we would not be here today celebrating this event. It is now my pleasure to introduce Dr Helen Haines, the Independent Federal Member for Indi, who will officially launch this project. Among the many aspects of her work for Indi communities, Dr Haines has a special interest in promoting renewable energy and in particular Community Energy. In February last year, Helen tabled in Parliament her private member's bill, the Australian Local Power Agency Bill 2021, which would encourage investment in community owned energy in regional areas, which would allow ordinary Australians to share in the benefits of the renewable energy boom. Given Helen's interest in this area we felt it was highly appropriate to ask her to be our key-note speaker. Finally, can I thank you all for attending our ceremony today and once again a special thankyou to all those who have contributed to this project. I would especially like to thank Lisa Mim for her cooperation in allowing us to conduct this ceremony at the kindergarten today.  John Lloyd Renewable Energy Benalla/Benalla Community Energy Project Convenor 25 February 2022 On Friday afternoon 25th February, Benalla Community Energy Project's Solar Panel Installation at Bernard Brigg's Kindergarten was officially launched by Helen Haines MP. Helen's passion for community renewable energy is demonstrated continually in communities throughout her Indigo Electorate.
BSFG President Peter Holmes also took the opportunity to thank John Lloyd, former BSFG President and retiring Renewable Energy Benalla/Benalla Community Energy Project convenor, for his tireless work in promoting renewable energy in our community. Thank you, John! Renewable Energy Benalla received advice from Winton Solar Farm on 24th December that our application for funds in this round was successful. A great Christmas present! Underwritten by BSFG until the Winton Solar Farm grant is received, the solar panels for Bernard Briggs Pre School were installed in late January while there were no children there. The preschool joins Munro Avenue Pre School in becoming the recipient of a repayable loan from the Benalla Community Energy Project which covers the up front costs normally involved with solar panel installation and/or energy efficiency upgrades.  More details in future posts! John Lloyd Things have been very quiet since our joint meeting in November.
The loan agreement document has been sent to the manager of NERPSA for completion of the loan request for panels for Bernard Briggs kindergarten. This includes details of the system to be installed and the loan required. Details of the estimated savings and the suggested quarterly repayment of $350 have also been sent, with the fist quarterly repayment on April 1. The panels will be installed allowing time to hear from Winton Solar Farm about our grant application. If the grant is late, or we are unsuccessful, BSFG will underwrite the loan. Once I know about the installation date and switching the system on, I will let you know. Our next meeting will probably be in later January, once we have heard back from BSFG about any changes in relation to action groups. Today I received a Christmas card from Helen Haines addressed to ‘John and all at REB’, wishing us all a joyous festive season. Can I add my wishes to everyone for a great Christmas and a healthy and safe 2022. John Lloyd Report to BSFG Committee - 26 October 2021
Renewable Energy Benalla (REB) has been struggling for some time to achieve some of its goals. We have recently had discussions about the future of REB. While these discussions about how the group will operate will continue for some time we believe we need to inform the BSFG committee of some proposals for change. Title: Renewable Energy Benalla is a very broad title and could evoke the notion of direct marketing of renewables rather than the social/community goal of promoting the adoption of renewable energy across the Benalla community. We are proposing that the title be changed to Community Energy Benalla as that better reflects the community focus. However there is the issue of possible confusion with the Benalla Community Energy Project. Considerations for Future Operations of the Group Benalla Stationary Energy Transition Strategy The focus of this document is to reduce stationary energy emissions to zero by achieving 100% renewable energy within 10 years. The document outlines three key steps to achieving this:
We are currently investigating a Solar Garden proposal which fits within the Replace with local renewables strategy. The Benalla Community Energy Project (solar panels or energy upgrades) does focus on Replace but may also focus on Reduce if future projects are to do with improving energy efficiency. Reduce and Replace strategies could be within the resources of Community Energy Benalla. Switch to Utility Scale would be beyond the resources of CEB without major involvement from the council. The goal of Switch would be to have a solar farm built to provide energy directly into the Benalla grid. A local example is where Wangaratta Council invited a developer to build a solar farm to provide power to the industrial estate. This attracted industries to Wangaratta to benefit from cheaper renewable energy. Could Benalla council be encouraged to do that for Enterprise Park? Reduce energy demand through better building and energy efficiency REB has conducted Energy Efficiency workshops in the past however the numbers attending the most recent workshops were disappointing. This is one of the key steps in reducing emissions and should continue to be part of the work of Community Energy Benalla. There are many resources on the internet about retrofitting existing houses to make them more energy efficient and reduce energy bills. Possibly CEB could focus on directing people to these resources through website and social media? Another possibility could be to conduct a forum focussed on people having problems paying their electricity bills. Energy Efficiency Awards In 2016 and 2018 BSFG and SunReal sponsored the Environmentally Sustainable Business Award as part of the Benalla Business Network "Business Excellence Awards". While it appears that BBN may not continue with these awards they may be interested in supporting an Energy Efficiency Award, obviously for businesses. While it is obvious that some sort of sponsorship would be needed we believe it may be something worth pursuing, particularly with the focus on businesses. Sustainability Victoria assisted with the judging of the business awards and they may be able assist again. Such awards may be best initiated by BSFG rather than CEB. Convenor Vacancy A major issue for Community Energy Benalla will be one of leadership as I will be moving away from Benalla in the near future. John Lloyd As part of the Benalla Sustainable Future Group and Renewable Energy Benalla, the Benalla Community Energy Project has established a revolving fund, sourced from donations, to install solar panels and other energy-saving projects on community facilities in and around Benalla. Our first project was the installation of solar panels at Munro Avenue Preschool launched in early May 2021. Our next project will be solar panels on the Bernard Briggs Kindergarten in Benalla. To make a donation through Paypal or using your credit card, click on the donate button: To make a donation through your bank: BSB : 633-00 Account#: 168407500 Reference with your name and email your details to us. Thank you for your support.  John Lloyd, David Blore, Patricia Brookes, Karen Nankervis
Benalla Community Energy Project Working Group Please contact us if you would like to find out more Email: [email protected]  L to R: John Lloyd (Convenor, Renewable Energy Benalla), David Blore(Benalla Community Energy Project (BCEP), Patricia Brooke (BCEP); Karen Nankervis (BCEP), Sandy Campbell, Brad Foletta (Solar Gain), Dr Helen Haines (MP for Indi), Alan Robertson (Head of Construction, Winton Solar Farm/FRV), Sue Campbell, Michelle Lindsay (Munro Avenue Pre-School Teacher), with three dear little preschool students, energy consumers of the future! John Lloyd’s presentation at the ‘Switch On’ ceremony for the Munro Avenue Pre-school ‘behind the meter’ initiative Introduction … …I would like to explain how the solar panels came to be installed on Munro Ave Preschool. As Michelle mentioned, I am Convenor of Renewable Energy Benalla, which is an action group of Benalla Sustainable Future Group, a not-for-profit community group which actively encourages taking action on climate change. Renewable Energy Benalla seeks to encourage the uptake of renewable energy in Benalla Rural City and has initiated the Benalla Community Energy Project as one way of contributing to this. The community energy project aims to establish a donation based revolving fund to install solar panels or undertake energy efficiency upgrades on community facilities in and around Benalla. The project provides interest free loans to the selected community facilities, to fund the works required, with no upfront contribution being necessary. Loan repayments to the fund from the host site are based on the estimated savings made on energy bills. The loan repayments gradually rebuild the balance of the fund, which can then be used to make a loan to another community building. In this way the fund becomes a revolving fund. Donations from the community help rebuild the balance of the fund more quickly than relying solely on loan repayments, which enables new loans to be made to other community facilities more frequently. Following discussions with the kindergarten management group, the North East Regional PreSchool Association, Munro Ave was selected as our first project. Normally, we would have needed to conduct a fund raising program but we were fortunate enough to obtain a grant from the Winton Solar Farm Community Benefit Program, which together with significant contributions from others, enabled us to undertake our first project without the need for fund raising. Future projects however will require donations from the community. We have established a facility to accept on-line donations and the details are on the publicity leaflets available today. Thank You… I would now like to thank the people and organisations that have made major contributions to this project. I will start with Susan and Sandy Campbell. Sandy was involved in some of the early discussion about establishing the fund and decided to make a significant donation to 'kick start' the fund. When the Winton Solar Farm announced their Community Benefit Scheme we applied for a grant of $5000 which we were fortunate enough to receive. We knew that this would enable us to start our first project without having to conduct a fund raising program. Our thanks to Zach Tariq, Project Manager at Winton Solar Farm who unfortunately is an apology today as he is not well, to Alan Robertson, Head of Construction, and to Sarah Stent, Community Engagement person for FRV, the builders of the Winton Solar Farm. I also need to thank Brad Foletta, the Manager at SolarGain Wangaratta. Some months ago I was talking to Brad about Renewable Energy Benalla and our plans to establish this Community Energy Project. He was interested and said that he thought it was time for SolarGain to give something back to the community. SolarGain did this by making a significant in-kind contribution to the installation costs of the panels. There have been others who have supported us in this project. We were able to obtain a small grant from DELWP, the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, which enabled us to employ consultants to develop guidelines for project management and governance of the Community Energy Project. Thank you to Fiona Roberts from DELWP and to the consultants Cath Botta and Trish Curtiss, who did the work for a reduced fee. Without the contributions and support from all these people we would not be here today celebrating this event. Introducing Helen Haines MP … It is now my pleasure to introduce Dr Helen Haines, the Independent Federal Member for Indi, who will officially launch this project. Among the many aspects of her work for Indi communities, Dr Haines has a special interest in promoting renewable energy and in particular Community Energy. During 2020 she consulted with a panel of local community energy leaders to develop the Local Power Plan. The goal of the Local Power Plan is to encourage investment in community owned energy in regional areas, which would allow ordinary Australians to share in the benefits of the renewable energy boom. In February, Helen tabled in Parliament her private member's bill, the Australian Local Power Agency Bill 2021, which would implement the recommendations of the Local Power Plan. Given Helen's interest in this area we felt it was highly appropriate to ask her to officially launch our project today. Our Next Community Energy Project … I would now like to publically announce our next project. This will be to install panels on the Bernard Briggs kindergarten in Church Street. This project will take some time to be implemented as it will largely depend on donations from the community. While the loan repayments from Munro Ave will help, they will take some time to rebuild the balance of the fund. We will be initiating a fund raising program in the near future. However, if you would like to donate to our fund now, the details are on the publicity leaflet. Finally, can I thank you all for attending our official launch today and once again a special thankyou to all those who have contributed to this project. I would especially like to thank Michelle for her cooperation in allowing us to conduct this ceremony at the kindergarten today.  John Lloyd chatting with Helen Haines MP after the presentations
John Lloyd Convenor, Renewable Energy Action (REB), an action group of Benalla Sustainable Future Group (BSFG) Thursday 6 May 2021 On Friday 9 April, photographer Heath Whiley took these wonderful photos of the team from Solar Gain installing solar panels on Munro Avenue Preschool - the inaugural REB Community Energy Project. Renewable Energy Benalla would like to acknowledge Solar Gain for their generous'in-kind' contribution of labour costs involved in installing the panels, along with a significant initial contribution to establish the Renewable Energy Fund by Sandy and Sue Campbell, and of course the Community Grant of $5000 received from the Winton Solar Farm.
Sustainable, dementia friendly house built in the desert wins Engineering Excellence Award13/3/2021  Desert Rose House recently won an Australian Engineering Excellence Award. About 70% of people living with dementia actually live in the community, not within an aged care setting. House designs like this one may provide the answer. The house design was submitted and built for the 2018 Solar Decathlon in Dubai but we think it has many features applicable for inland Australia, particularly in a warming climate. It contains many automatic thermal control elements which are available off the shelf.
David Blore Read the article: Building a sustainable, dementia-friendly home in the desert by Edie-Louise Diemar October 29, 2020 on the Create - Engineering Ideas into Reality - Australian Engineers website . The photography of the Desert Rose House was included in the article. Announced in December 2020, winners of Winton Solar Farm Community Grants and funded projects included 'Renewable Energy Benalla – seed funding for a new Community Energy Project'.
"John Lloyd, convenor of volunteer sustainability group, Renewable Energy Benalla, (an action group of Benalla Sustainable Future Group) said seed funding would enable the group to launch its Community Energy Project and progressively install solar and energy efficiency upgrades on local community buildings. “Funding from Winton Solar Farm will enable us to provide a loan to Munro Avenue Preschool to install premium solar panels and a smart meter next month. “With the savings they make from going solar, the Preschool can pay back this loan in a few years, at which point we will reinvest the money into providing new solar panels for another community group,” he said." Extract from Winton Solar Farm news item - $35,000 in social support awarded as part of Winton Solar Farm Community Grants. December 15, 2020 Yesterday I was informed that the Community Energy Project was successful in obtaining a $5000 grant from Winton Solar Farm.
This will enable us to install panels on our first project – Munro Ave preschool. More information to come! John Lloyd
Hello to friends of Renewable Energy Benalla,
I have previously sent you information about Indigo Power, our local community energy provider. Some of you may have watched one of the webinars about the launch of Community Energy Hubs and Indigo Power a couple of weeks ago. If you would like to watch the video of the webinar you can do that here.
Indigo Power is asking people to compare their rates with their current energy retailer. I did that and I was agreeably surprised to find that Indigo Power rates were very competitive.
I have attached a brochure about Indigo Power and the Benalla Community Hub and have copied below further information about joining Indigo Power. John Lloyd Join the Benalla Community Energy Hub Electricity generation is the largest driver of climate change and bills take over $160 million out of our region each year. Together we can change that. We employ local people and will invest half of any profits in renewable energy projects in our communities. So every time you pay your bill, you’ll be making a difference. As a customer, you’ll be connected to your community energy hub where you can keep track of the energy generated and shared between you and your neighbours. We’re also building local clean energy generation and storage for extra supply. Find out more at indigopower.com.au [email protected] or 1800 491 739 Retail energy provided by Indigo Power Services. Indigo Power Services is a trading name of Energy Locals Pty Ltd, ABN 23606408879, a licensed energy retailer. With meetings at the Benalla Rural City offices cancelled due to COVID-19 regulations, there will be no minutes for March/April. However the following report covers developments since the last minutes. REDUCE 1/3
Energy Efficiency Virtual tour of Energy Efficient House Adrian Howden’s son has worked on developing a 'virtual tour' of an energy efficient house. The basic app is set up and he is now waiting to use material from the presentations last year to develop a 'walk through' highlighting problems and solutions. John Lloyd has forwarded to Adrian the power point presentations on 'Draught Proofing & Insulation' and 'Lighting & Windows’ that were presented during the 2019 Energy Efficiency sessions. Some slides from these presentations may be able to be used in the 'virtual tour'. John will make suggestions for future action in relation to Energy Efficiency shortly. REPLACE 1/3 Community Energy Project - Establishing a donation-based fund to install panels on community buildings 1. Participation in a Community Energy workshop webinar & consultations with CORENA John Lloyd took part in a Community Energy workshop organised by Hume DELWP and the Community Power Agency. The purpose of the workshop was to provide critical feedback and advice about our project. We received a number of helpful suggestions about implementing this project. As a result of participating in this workshop DELWP have made a $3000 grant available to REB to help implement the project. We believe the best way to use this grant is to employ someone to undertake administrative tasks involved with setting up governance of the fund and to pay for professional development of communication messaging and materials. In relation to obtaining Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status, which means donations are tax deductable, we were advised that this could take a long time and it was suggested that we should talk to CORENA, who have been conducting a donation based revolving fund for a number of years. CORENA informed us that they did not have DGR status for the first three years of their operation and they suggested that we should not wait to obtain DGR status but should go ahead without it. CORENA also advised that obtaining DGR Status should become easier from July when applications will be handled by the Australian Charities & Not-for-Profit Commission (ACNC). As the Benalla Renewable Energy Fund is a BSFG bank account, BSFG will need to obtain DGR status. John has discussed this with BSFG President, Peter Holmes, who agrees that BSFG will need to do this. 2. Community Energy Efficiency and Solar Grants 2020 Grants of up to $12,500 were available for energy generation and storage projects. There was a very short time frame for applications with only two projects per electorate to be funded and it was based on 'first come first served' principles. John suggested to the North East Regional Pre-school Association (NERPSA) that they would be eligible to apply in their own right. John offered to help them with their application if they decided to apply. NERPSA did not apply as the Indi electorate already had the maximum number of applications. 3. Community Energy Project implementation and Development of a Consultant’s Brief Community Energy Project working group members have been communicating by email and are working through the steps required to implement this project. A brief is currently being developed for a consultant to undertake the tasks mentioned above. OTHER: Request from Geoff Lodge, Goulbourn Valley Community Energy Geoff Lodge has requested/suggested that REB could be involved in helping GVCE install larger PV systems on factories in Benalla. Follow up with Geoff to be confirmed. SWITCH 1/3 Waste to Energy Adrian Howden has stepped away from involvement with Plastic Energy and moved to a watching brief to see what they are doing in Australia and where. His suggestion of a plant in Albury/Wodonga seemed to have merit for them, but as to who will be the principal investor remains to be seen. The main project has hit a snag in that the amount to be processed is larger than the plant size they have at present. Adrian is exploring another approach which requires specific data from EPA, looking at a local plus a specialized operation added to it and considering if it is the type of operation we want and need to achieve an economic outcome. “All this is now a pipe dream in the current economic crisis, but if grasped, the opportunity could be feasible. Time will tell” Adrian. Preliminary work on Micro Grid Feasibility Nothing reported this month. While electric systems are the cheapest to buy they are the most expensive to run and are the largest source of climate pollution for most households. Across our region, water heating can be upwards of a third of a household's energy bill. If you’ve got an inefficient hot water system it’s costing you money, and it’s costing the environment.
ENERGY EFFICIENT HOT WATER SYSTEMS REGIONAL BULK BUY OFFER Renewable Energy Benalla is partnering with Indigo Power (Community Energy Retailer) to offer two best price energy efficient hot water systems in Benalla. The two systems being offered are a Reclaim Energy 315 litre CO2 Heat Pump system or an Apricus 315 litre Evacuated Tubes Solar system. Both of these systems are up to five times more efficient than electric element hot water tanks and will reduce your carbon emissions by up to 80%, as well as significantly reducing your energy bills. This is part of a regional bulk buy that is being offered through many renewable energy groups across all of north east Victoria and thus has the benefit of cheaper prices for these products The Victorian government is encouraging people to replace their electric hot water systems with solar hot water or heat pump systems by making a rebate of $1000 available. By taking advantage of this bulk buy offer you will be able to replace your aging electric hot water system with an energy efficient system at a significantly reduced price. Because this is a ‘one off ‘ bulk buy, with the suppliers offering significant discounts (approximately 20%) it is only open for a few weeks and this offer will close by Christmas. More details are available on the flyer below including how to register your interest. Renewable Energy Benalla Peter Maddock 0418 135 330 |
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Banner - launch of REB's Munro Avenue Pre School 'behind the meter' solar panel installation, May 6 '21
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