Council locks in contract supporting wind and solar energy

06 October 2020

Deal supports the transition to renewable energy

Tweed Shire Council has begun a 10-year Power Purchase Agreement with retailer Flow Power to supply electricity to Council’s largest sites.

The agreement includes buying more than half of Council’s electricity to run its larger sites from NSW wind and solar farms.

The Power Purchase Agreement sources energy from Sapphire Wind Farm, near Glenn Innes, and the new Bomen Solar Farm, near Wagga Wagga.

Mayor of Tweed Cr Chris Cherry said Council was supporting the construction and ongoing production of renewable energy sources in Australia through this agreement.

“We have taken the lead from other large organisations, such as the Sydney Opera House and Newcastle City Council, who similarly signed these agreements, which will greatly assist our nation transform from a reliance on brown energy to energy sources such as wind and solar,” Cr Cherry said.

Council recently adopted a new Climate Change Policy that sets a goal for the organisation to achieve net zero carbon emissions by the year 2030.

To achieve this goal, a Renewable Energy Action Plan has been developed. Under this plan, Council has completed a broad range of energy efficiency works and has installed more than 800kW of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems across Council facilities. It plans to install a further 750kW of solar PV at more sites this financial year.

Tweed Shire Council also is working with Essential Energy to replace existing streetlights with new efficient LED (light emitting diode) lights. This program is expected to reduce the electricity needed to power streetlights by more than half.

These local projects, combined with Council’s intention to progressively increase its supply of renewable energy, will enable Council to achieve its interim targets of a 25 per cent reduction of electricity-related carbon emissions by 2022 and a 50 per cent reduction by 2025.

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Caption: Under the Renewable Energy Action Plan, Council has completed a range of energy efficiency works, including this solar PV installation at Bray Park Water Treatment Plant.