Apartment blocks across Canberra will be able to apply for a slice of $3.6 million to put solar panels on their rooves.
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Half the money comes from ACT government funds and the other half from the Commonwealth.
The ACT government reckons families in more than 2,100 units would benefit.
It claims the panels "could provide a 35 per cent reduction in electricity bills for Canberrans living in apartments".
But to get the subsidy (in the form of tax rebates and loans), bodies corporate would have to get agreement from residents.
This could be complicated. Solar panels work best for people using electricity during the day, according to Sue Chong who put panels on the roof of her home in an earlier stage of the scheme which excluded apartments. She now pays nothing for electricity.
For apartment blocks, there would have to be a system to allocate savings on bills.
If residents can agree, money will be there.
"Multi-dwelling body corporates will be able to access up to $100,000 for rooftop solar, half through a Commonwealth rebate or grant through the Solar Banks initiative and half from an interest-free loan offered by the ACT government as part of the Sustainable Household Scheme," the ACT government said.
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The federal Solar Banks initiative is meant to increase the use of solar power in apartments, a category which had been excluded because of the difficulty of getting collective agreements. Labor's hope was that it would provide an incentive to apartment dwellers to make those agreements.
As Canberra federal MP Alicia Payne put it: "Unfortunately one in three Australians are 'locked out' of rooftop solar, unable to install panels and reap the benefits of cleaner, cheaper energy in their household bills.
"This includes renters, apartment-dwellers, people who can't afford upfront solar costs, and those whose homes just aren't compatible.
"Community solar banks, allowing those locked out of the market to access solar energy, have been popping up around the world and meeting this challenge for over a decade, including in over 40 U.S. states."
The hope of the ACT government is now that the solar panels will pop up across Canberra.
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr said: "We're pleased to be partnering with the Commonwealth government on this initiative, as any investment that prioritises sustainability while also helping Canberrans to reduce the cost of their energy bills is a step in the right direction."
The ACT government said 92 per cent of apartments were eligible. The rules would be similar to those for houses under its Sustainable Household Scheme.
Applications will open in the next three months.
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Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
