The City of Sydney and the City of Adelaide will both be 100 per cent powered by renewable energy from Wednesday, the councils’ respective lord mayors have announced.
The switch will see all council-owned infrastructure and buildings run by renewable energy.
As of today, the City of Sydney is powered by 100% renewable electricity. pic.twitter.com/3qJaQduBac
— Clover Moore (@CloverMoore) June 30, 2020
As of tomorrow, 1 July, the City of Adelaide will be powered by nature, as we switch to 100 per cent renewable electricity.
— Sandy Verschoor (@sandyver) June 30, 2020
The City of Sydney’s new energy deal is valued at over $60 million and is the largest standalone renewable energy agreement for an Australian council to date.
The Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney, Clover Moore, who spearheaded her council’s switch to renewables, says all levels of government need to urgently transition to renewable energy.
“We are in the middle of a climate emergency. If we are to reduce emissions and grow the green power sector, all levels of government must urgently transition to renewable energy,” she said.
The renewable energy used by the City will come from three wind and solar generators located in regional NSW. Sapphire Wind Farm, Bomen Solar Farm and Repower Shoalhaven are the chosen generators.
Moore says the City’s deal “will also save our ratepayers money and support regional jobs in wind and solar farms in Glen Innes, Wagga Wagga and the Shoalhaven.”
The switch will see all streetlights, pools, sports fields, depots, buildings, including Sydney Town Hall, powered by renewables. It’s projected to save up to half a million dollars per year over the next ten years and around 20,000 tonnes of carbon emissions each year.
And in a first for a South Australian council, the City of Adelaide has sealed a power purchase agreement with Flow Power, to meet its electricity needs from a mix of wind and solar power.
The electricity will be sourced from Clements Gap wind farm in mid-north South Australia, and two new Solar Farms on the Eyre Peninsula and South East, that are being developed.
The City of Adelaide’s Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor, says the council is taking climate change seriously.
“This partnership demonstrates that we are taking real and meaningful action on climate change,” she said. “We are leading the way in the transition to cost effective, clean and reliable energy.”
Community buildings, electric vehicle chargers, barbecues in the Park Lands, water pumps, streetlights and traffic lights within the council’s vicinity will be powered by renewable energy.
It will reduce emissions by over 11,000 tonnes, the equivalent of taking 3,500 cars off the road.