Not-for-profit community groups will be able to access interest-free loans backed by the ACT government to make sustainability upgrades.
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The sustainable household scheme offers loans up to $15,000 which can be paid off over up to 10 years, and can cover products like solar panels, battery storage and electric vehicles and appliances.
Chief Minister Andrew Barr will on Tuesday announce the scheme will be expanded to cover not-for-profit community groups.
More than 7000 households have already applied for a loan from the scheme, which opened last year.
"The scheme has been hugely successful in ensuring more Canberrans benefit from a net zero emission future," Mr Barr said.
"The expansion of the scheme will help community organisations make small and large changes that can lead to positive impacts for the organisation and our community."
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Brighte chief executive Katherine McConnell, whose sustainable financial services firm administers the ACT's loan scheme, said solar power was the gateway to reduce energy bills.
"We're delighted to welcome community organisations who want to upgrade their premises with solar and sustainable equipment to now participate in the scheme and help bring sustainable benefits back to their communities," Ms McConnell said.
The scheme has already added the equivalent electricity generation capacity of a new solar farm to the ACT, with an extra 20 megawatts of rooftop solar.
"The scheme's top eight suppliers have premises in the ACT and are receiving more than $18 million worth of new business," an ACT government spokeswoman said in April.
Australia's shift to wind and solar energy between 2019 and 2021 was greater than anywhere in the world except the Netherlands, the annual Global Electricity Review found.
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Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
