Enova Energy managing director Tony Pfeiffer said many towns like Armidale were sending millions of dollars in electricity bills to distant corporate energy giants when they could use their own rooftop solar supplies collectively and keep more money circulating locally.
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Mr Pfeiffer said figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal of New South Wales show that $23,981,146 annually is spent on electricity by Armidale’s 11,767 households.
“That figure would be even higher if businesses were included. Imagine how much better it would be for Armidale if you could keep that money in the town," he said.
Enova Energy was established to help communities take charge of their energy supplies, reduce greenhouse emissions and help make renewable energy more affordable for all. It made history when it became Australia’s first community-owned renewable energy retailer in 2016. As a social project, it returns half of its profits (after tax and reinvestment) back into community renewable energy projects, education and energy efficiency services.
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It is expanding across the divide to towns in the New England.
Mr Pheiffer said 50 per cent of the electricity supplied by Enova was sourced from renewables, and while he said that figure was increasing, he acknowleded that Enova was still a small player in the industry.
"We know that it is a competitive market. We've got to be competitive and we're working hard to make sure our offering is as competitive as possible. Yes, at the end of the day price is going to win out for some people," he said.
"But for a lot of people the valued proposition of supporting their own local communities and providing a solution for climate change is a compelling case."
A spokesman for Origin Energy thought his company had a great deal to offer.
“Origin provides a number of ways for customers to access clean and affordable energy solutions – including a range of solar and home battery solutions, competitive Feed-In-Tariffs and access to government accredited Green Power," he said.
"We are also making it simple and easy for customers to see how much money they can save with our online Savernator tool which tells customers within a few clicks if they can save with Origin and if so, how much they can save.”
