Beneath the sprawling gum trees standing on disused, government-owned land, a quiet solar revolution is afoot.
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The first steps toward community-owned solar farms in smaller towns on the city’s rural fringe have been tentatively trod.
Spurred on by a combination of the state government’s commitment to renewable energy, the apparent decline in fossil fuel power stations in Victoria, and a greater community awareness of the need for renewables, the Bendigo Sustainability Group (BSG), and its President Chris Weir have been ‘prospecting’, in a way, across the municipality.
The group has identified a number of disused crown land parcels which it believes could accommodate rows of jet-black solar panels, capable of producing one megawatt of electricity per day.
On the vast electrical scale, one megawatt – the ability to power 160 homes each day – may seem unimpressive, but if four farms were built, as Mr Weir intends, the business case becomes more appealing to government, banks and investors.
“The cost of solar has been the main reason not many farms are cropping up around Central Victoria,” Mr Weir said, suggesting that a panel on a roof here or there was more commonplace across the region.
To reduce costs, Mr Weir’s group, which is currently in talks with the City of Greater Bendigo, would not buy the land off the government or council, but simply use or lease it.
Each farm and an associated storage facility is slated to cost between $2.5-$3 million.
Asked where this money was coming from, Mr Weir, with a wry smile etched on his face, described a number of sources.
Community investors and crowdfunding are smaller funding wells Mr Weir is looking to tap into.
In 2014, BSG raised $25,000 via crowdfunding for 80 solar panels on the Bendigo Library, and similarly it raised $17,000 for 11 kilowatt of solar on the Discovery Centre.
A renewed political appetite for renewable energy will be the main driver behind the project, which could make Bendigo the gateway for solar farms across central, northern and north western Victoria, according to Mr Weir.
Renewable energy target
In June 2016, the Victorian government committed to Victorian renewable energy generation targets of 25 per cent by 2020 and 40 per cent by 2025.
In its 2017/18 budget, of the $122 million allocated to renewable energy, $29.4 million will go toward “new financing models for investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects”.
Mr Weir is hopeful the government will enter into a contract agreement with BSG to buy the electricity off the group at a fixed rate for a particular length of time.
This “bankable” contract will enable BSG to secure funding from banks and other investors.
Reverse auction
The state government’s energy targets (VRET) – where it plans to have a renewable energy capacity of 5400MW by 2025 – will be supported by a competitive reverse auction scheme.
A reverse auction is when organisations, like the BSG, bid the lowest price they would be willing to accept to develop renewable energy projects.
The government will then decide which organisation is most viable, and enter into power purchase agreements with them.
“It will be the second gold rush. There will be a massive boom (for solar) over the next two to five years.”
A spokesperson for Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said: “Depending on the size and set up of the solar project, as well as the final design of VRET, they may be eligible to bid into the scheme as a supplier of renewable energy.”
Details of the scheme will soon be released.
Coonooer Bridge wind farm sets example
The ACT has been the most progressive state with renewable energy, recently announcing plans to go 100 per cent renewable by 2020 – a decision denounced as “crazy” by deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce.
Twenty per cent of that renewable energy comes from a wind farm at Coonooer Bridge, 120 kilometres north west of Bendigo, according to Mr Weir.
This example illustrated the opportunities available on our doorstep, Mr Weir said.
Solar has not taken off in central Victoria primarily because of the price.
It can cost anywhere between $130-$150 to produce one watt of electricity.
But mass production of solar panels, new flat bed-type designs and the cost of finance being at record lows, makes the idea of solar more appealing for businesses and investors.
Construction of Victoria’s largest scale (320MW) solar farm in Mildura began in April.
The three roughly 100MW grid-connected solar farms are to be built by an Australian company with international backing, and could signal the start of a substantial shift toward solar power in Victoria, Mr Weir said.
Areas like Mildura and Kerang have a mean annual average of five hours’ sunshine, while Bendigo had four, and Melbourne three.
The BSG’s ideas are certainly ambitious but Mr Weir is firm in his belief the renewed solar drive is a light that will never go out.