The Baillieu government could save $2.5 billion on concession payments over the next 20 years if it fulfilled an election commitment to improve the average energy efficiency of Victorian homes, new research suggests.
Research to be released today by the Alternative Technology Association, the Victorian Council of Social Service and Environment Victoria says retrofitting 1 million low-income households would reduce the long-term state budget burden of helping them pay power bills.
Heading into the 2010 state election the Coalition promised to support the transition of all existing housing stock to meet an average of five-star energy rating as soon as possible. It is estimated low-income homes now have an average rating of two stars.
The energy star system rates how much a house needs to be heated or cooled to stay comfortable. All new homes in Victoria have to be built with a six-star energy rating, but it has been estimated upgrades to 1.46 million existing households may be needed to meet the five-star commitment.
The association’s Damien Moyse said the budget savings on energy concession payments would start from year one under the program, with almost $100 million saved five years into the program and at least $600 million after 10.
After 20 years the cumulative savings would rise to $2.5 billion. But the savings do not take into account spending on any new program to help lift the energy efficiency of existing homes to meet the commitment. Nor does it take into account any savings on concession payments for water bills.
The modelling assumes 20,000 homes would be retrofitted in the first year in a pilot stage, rising to 125,000 in the fourth year and each year onwards. The results are calculated on a 32 per cent saving in household energy in moving from two to five stars.
A spokeswoman for Planning Minister Matthew Guy said ”the report is long on assumptions and light on practical detail about how their proposed program would work and how the government would achieve these savings”.
