Ginninderry suburbs protected from soaring energy costs

For Canberra residents who've already made the switch to electric, the ACT government's fixed-price renewables contract will protect them against a price surge.

Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Shane Rattenbury said the ACT's renewable energy contracts guaranteed a certain price to the renewable energy generator, so when the wholesale market dipped below that price the ACT government topped it up.

When the market was above that fixed price, as is the case now, that surplus had to be paid back to the ACT which helped to defray energy costs, he said.

"Current global circumstances underline the energy security that comes from using local renewable energy generation," Mr Rattenbury said.

"The more you're using locally produced renewables, you're not subject to the vagaries of global prices or the geopolitics of the world."

A plan was currently being developed for the ACT to transition away from gas to an electricity-driven jurisdiction.

It will provide a pathway for households to switch cooking, heating and hot water systems to electric, once appliances reached their end of life.

Mr Rattenbury said the vision was for a fossil-fuel free ACT, with limited industrial use of hydrogen gas or biogas.

"We're expecting predominantly electrification of the ACT with some niche potential for niche gas uses," he said.

"Our first intent is to move to prevent the further rollout of gas networks. This means we're making sure the problem doesn't get any bigger."

Mr Rattenbury said talks were under way with the new federal government on speeding up the electric vehicle revolution.

"The Labor Party took a number of commitments to the election which will improve the situation," he said.

"I think that means we can accelerate this much more quickly."

The ACT is expected to pass legislation before the end of the year preventing new suburbs from connecting to gas. It follows the removal of the requirement in 2020, after amendments were made to the territory plan.

Jessica Stewart, Ginninderry sustainability manager, had to apply for the right to not connect the new region bordering ACT and NSW, prior to the changes.

Its first electric suburb on Canberra's western edge, Strathnairn, now has about 1000 residents living in 300 all-electric homes, with another 200 under construction.

Macnamara will go next, with 35 blocks auctioned next month, 51 sold via a ballot which closed Friday and 31 as house and land packages through the display village builders.

Ms Stewart said home owners could bring in their own gas bottles should they choose. However, only a handful have.

She said some people had been put off initially by the idea of cooking with gas. A demonstration day at Belconnen markets had won them over, though.

Ms Stewart said their analysis, conducted several years ago, showed putting in a gas system for cooking, heating and water would cost $15,000, with about $3000 a year running cost.

She said putting in solar, plus a heat pump hot water system, reverse-cycle air-conditioning system and an induction cooktop cost about $21,000, with a $1000 annual running cost.

Ginninderry has electric vehicle fact sheets for residents to enable them to "future proof" their homes for electric cars, fast-charging stations in its public spaces and plans in place for schools commercial centres and multi-unit sites to have fast-charging capability.

READ ALSO:

To lighten the load on the grid, Ginninderry has allocated blocks of land for community battery storage in the future.

The development, a partnership with the Suburban Land Agency, is part of an ongoing research collaboration with Evoenergy and the ACT Environment and Planning Directorate to measure the impact of going off gas.

The project will examine whether more electricity is being used or whether the use of renewables balances out the extra requirement.

Ms Stewart said they had a long-term arrangement to better look at the data from the homes over time.

"It's about being able to keep the grid stable through the whole transition to both renewables and to an all-electric neighbourhood," she said.

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: