Greens join push to kick gas, with $235 million “electrify everything” pilot

The Australian Greens have become the latest to embrace a plan for electrifying energy use, saying Australian households and businesses can cut energy costs and slash emissions by switching to renewable electricity.

Australian Greens leader Adam Bandt announced details of the Greens’ $235 million “electrify everything” pilot plan, providing funding for an entire residential suburb and a regional town to shift all of its energy use onto electricity, at the Smart Energy Expo in Sydney.

“We need to electrify our major energy users and replace the gas in our homes by replacing them with a 100 per cent renewable grid, rooftop solar, and household and community batteries,” Bandt told the conference.

“Cheap renewable power here in Australia will electrify homes and businesses in Australia.

“We will assist people to install batteries at homes, in their businesses and in the community. Or support people to replace gas in their homes with electric appliances like heat pumps and induction cooktops and put an electric vehicle in the garage,” he said.

Electrification has the potential to drive significant reductions in Australian greenhouse gas emissions by shifting residential devices like stoves, space heating and water heaters off fossil gas and onto renewable electricity.

Likewise, replacing fossil-fuelled vehicles with electric alternatives has the potential to slash transport emissions and cut fuel costs.

Bandt said the Greens would task the Australian Renewable Energy Agency with administrating the trial – expected to run over the course of two years – while delivering energy cost savings for the participating households and businesses.

According to the Greens, the pilot would support the development of new trade and industry skills that could eventually support a broader, Australia-wide roll-out of electrified suburbs and businesses.

“This will not only bring down costs for people, it will create jobs and industry know-how to be able to get ready for the transition we need to get off coal and gas,” Bandt said.

“The Greens will drive clean, cheap renewable energy through this pilot project and power past coal and gas.”

The Greens’ proposal mirrors a similar ‘suburb zero’ pilot proposal launched by ACT independent senate candidate David Pocock earlier in the week.

The former Wallabies captain has proposed electrifying a Canberra suburb as a pilot demonstration ahead of an Australia-wide roll-out.

Both plans have been informed by the work of energy innovator and Rewiring Australia founder Saul Griffith, who has advocated for as much of Australia’s energy use as possible to be electrified so that it can be powered by lower cost and zero emissions supplies of wind and solar energy.

“Rewiring Australia is working with parties and candidates across the political spectrum to help them understand the benefits that electrification will bring for electorates across Australia,” Griffith said.

“Electrification is the fastest, most cost effective way to slash emissions. It also demolishes household energy bills by $5,000 per year, bringing serious financial relief to folks who are feeling the pinch.”

“The Greens have clearly grasped the opportunity offered by electrification. More than three million Australian homes already enjoy the incredible benefit of solar panels thanks to modest investment from Government to foster that industry. Now we can go further and fully electrify our homes and cars,” Griffith added.

The Greens are hoping to woo voters who have become disenchanted with the major parties over their lacklustre climate change policies, and Bandt told the Expo that more was needed from the federal government to support Australia’s transition to clean energy.

“The major parties say that they accept that a transition is inevitable and underway. But it’s not simply enough, we say, to back more renewable energy because the climate crisis is upon us,” he said.

“Towns and communities are being destroyed by extreme weather caused by the climate crisis. We have to power past coal and gas. We need this government or the next government to adopt targets that are consistent with the science.

“The Greens believe that to tackle this climate crisis. We need to get to net zero emissions by 2035. That would be Australia’s fair share towards keeping global heating at or below 1.5 degrees.”