Cheaper power promised under renewable energy bulk-buy schemes

Residents and small business owners would get cheaper power under a proposed renewable-energy bulk-buying scheme covering at least four inner-Melbourne councils.

The MPower initiative, an election policy of incumbent Lord Mayor Nick Reece, would allow electricity users to opt in to a community-led scheme that combines demand and brings down prices.

Mooney Valley council candidate Pierce Tyson, lord mayoral candidate Nick Reece and Port Phillip council candidate Heather Consulo.Credit: Jason South

Up to 500,000 people and 100,000 business could have access to the collective purchasing scheme after the incumbent mayors of Port Phillip, Moonee Valley and Stonnington threw their support behind the policy.

Reece’s main rival in the lord mayoral race, Arron Wood, announced a similar bulk-power purchasing policy this week, called the Melbourne Renewable Energy Project.

Reece said his plan could cut power bills by hundreds of dollars every year. MPower was a way of offering renewable power to residents, such as those in apartments, who can’t put solar panels on their roof, he said.

“Eighty per cent of people who live in the City of Melbourne live in apartments,” Reece said.

“And so they don’t have the same access to rooftop solar as people living in the suburbs. This is a great way for them to access solar power or renewable power at an affordable price.”

The two leading lord mayoral candidates have announced bulk-buying renewable energy plans. Credit: Getty Images

Under the scheme, the City of Melbourne would bring on a third party on behalf of residents and businesses to run an auction to get the best possible price on renewable power.

Reece said similar bulk-purchasing arrangements in the City of London and in NSW had cut prices by over 20 per cent.

“This comes at a time when cost-of-living pressure is acute, and people need every bit of help they can get,” he said.

If re-elected, current councillors Heather Cunsolo from Port Phillip, Pierce Tyson from Mooney Valley and Joe Gianfriddo from Stonnington said they would push for their councils to join the MPower bulk-buying scheme.

“It makes a lot of sense to work together with the inner-city councils, because we have similar housing types,” said Cunsolo.

Tyson said it was another way for councils to meet their emissions targets.

“I think its genius is in its simplicity,” he said. “The stronger the bulk-buy gets, the more people get on board.”

Reece said the scheme could be opened up to include other inner Melbourne councils, estimating that if all nine municipalities were involved it would allow around one million people to take part.

He said the policy could give electricity producers certainty to invest in large-scale renewable energy projects.

Lord mayoral candidate Arron Wood.Credit: Chris Hopkins

If Reece is elected, the City of Melbourne will begin consultation and negotiations for MPower in 2025, with the first contracts expected to be available in 2026.

Under Wood’s plan, the first round of that project will be focused on high-rise apartments and the second on small businesses.

Wood said he would also push for changes in planning provisions to require electric-vehicle chargers in new housing developments.

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