CEFC invests $50 million to help kick gas out from student digs

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) says it has invested $50 million to help Scape Australia, a leading provider of student accommodation, accelerate electrification and kick out gas across the its nationwide portfolio.

Scape has a portfolio of 38 buildings that boasts over 18,500 beds, with another 10 buildings in planning and development. All are located within Australia’s four key educational precincts – Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Adelaide.

The CEFC investment into Scape Australia, a subsidiary of parent residential platform The Living Company, aims to accelerate the electrification of up to 20 residential buildings with the removal of gas infrastructure.

The CEFC describes it as the largest apartment electrification project in Australia to date, and will also establish a pilot program to test behind-the-meter load-shifting initiatives, and will install advanced metering and control technologies to manage the energy demand and respond to price signals from the grid.

Scape will also use the investment to support its ambition to explore the use of PassivHaus principles in new developments.

PassivHaus is a voluntary building standard for energy efficiency that prioritises thermal comfort, reducing the need for heating and cooling by relying instead on insulation, airtightness, appropriate window and door design, ventilation systems with heat recovery, and the elimination of thermal bridges.

PassivHaus principles have been shown to achieve up to 70 per cent improvements in overall energy efficiency, as compared to other high performing buildings.

“Electrifying Australia’s existing buildings is essential to achieving our net-zero goals,” said Michael Di Russo, CEFC executive director and head of property.

“This is an important step in addressing the challenges in electrifying existing buildings and sets a pathway for cutting emissions across the broader residential sector to try and get Australian homes off gas faster.  

“This investment will remove gas infrastructure from most of the assets in one of Australia’s largest residential rental portfolios, delivering ambitious sustainability outcomes for the growing [purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA)] sector and, more broadly, providing an example for the residential apartment market.”

Scape is currently aiming to reach net zero carbon in operation by 2030 at the latest and is looking to renewable electricity and improved efficiency to help in those aims, as well as phasing out fossil fuels.

Australia’s residential sector accounts for around 24 per cent of the country’s electricity use and 10 per cent of total carbon emissions, according to the federal government, and about 16 per cent of the country’s 11 million homes are apartments.

“Electrifying our national portfolio at scale is not just the right thing to do, it’s a strategic commitment to the future our residents deserve, and the planet urgently needs,” said Craig Carracher, founder and joint CEO of The Living Company.

“Our buildings are homes for thousands of young people, and we have a responsibility to lead by example – cutting emissions, removing fossil fuels, and hardwiring sustainability into the way we design, retrofit and operate.

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