Switching to solar energy will be cheaper and simpler for households and businesses in the City of Melbourne under a bulk-buying policy launched as part of Robert Doyle’s campaign to be re-elected lord mayor.
Cr Doyle said that if re-elected on October 27, the council would next year nominate preferred providers of solar panels and act as a broker for residents and business owners to encourage them to switch.
The policy, which would cost the council $200,000 to implement, is aimed at reducing power bills in the city and help inner-city suburbs achieve the same level of solar usage as the leading suburbs on Melbourne’s fringe.
The Doyle team’s policy launch came less than a week after the Greens proposed implementing solar farms across the city. Under the plan, people would buy shares similar to purchasing allotments in a communal vegetable garden.
Arron Wood, a member of Cr Doyle’s ticket, said it would cost households and businesses 10 per cent less to buy a solar system under a bulk-buying scheme, and that the average household would halve power bills by switching to solar. Cr Doyle said many people wanted to switch but were put off by a crowded market.
Victoria is well behind Queensland and New South Wales when it comes to solar usage, and Cr Doyle admitted the City of Melbourne even lagged behind other parts of the state.
“Maybe it’s a misapprehension about our weather. The reality is solar systems work extremely well in our city and they save power,” he said.
“There are people who have almost zero power bills because of their solar arrays. We want more businesses to jump into that market. But often that barrier is a lack of knowledge.”
Cr Doyle said the council would be “aggressive” in encouraging people to switch, although the scheme would be voluntary. He expected many of the city’s 50,000 households and 15,000 businesses to consider signing up. “I hope we’re beating them off with sticks,” he said.
Under the Greens’ policy, launched by lord mayor candidate Alison Parkes and councillor Cathy Oke with former national Greens leader Bob Brown, panels would be put on top of apartment buildings and community facilities such as schools, and allow nearby residents to share implementation costs.
