Victoria’s State Electricity Commission (SEC) says it will slash the power bill of one of Melbourne’s biggest sports and aquatic centres by as much as $80,000 a year through a rooftop solar system that it has installed and will operate as the facility’s retailer.
The SEC was resurrected last year by the Victorian Labor government as a developer, generator and retailer of renewable electricity, which also helps its government, commercial and industrial customers with demand management and behind-the-meter solutions.
At the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre (MSAC) in Albert Park, the SEC has installed a 1.3 megawatt rooftop solar system that it says should supply around a quarter of MSAC’s total energy use, cutting electricity costs by as much as $80,000 each year.
The solar system will be owned and operated by the SEC, which will sell the electricity generated by the solar system to MSAC at a lower cost than electricity purchased from the grid.
“MSAC will receive around 24% of their energy at a lower cost, avoiding upfront costs and a range of network charges,” said Suzanne Retschko, SEC general manager.
“Installing solar is not only critical in helping keep our fees and charges affordable for the millions of Victorians who access our Victorian State Sport Centres every day of the year, it’s an important part of our commitment to the long-term sustainability of our venues,” added Kate Roffey, CEO of the State Sport Centres Trust, the manager and operator of MSAC.
“Our partnership with SEC has allowed us to invest in solar to power MSAC without having to outlay the large-scale up-front capital investment usually required.”
The Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre was opened in 1997 on the edge of Albert Park Lake before being revamped and expanded in time for the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games.
MSAC is home to several swimming pools including two 50 metre competition pools which regularly host state and national swimming championships, as well as a diving pool, wave pool, and hydrotherapy pool.
Though the SEC was originally established over a century ago to generate electricity from Victoria’s brown coal reserves before it was broken up in the 1990s, the Labor party revived the SEC in 2023 as a publicly owned renewable energy company.
“This is what our publicly owned SEC is all about – delivering cheaper renewable energy while helping keep costs down at places Victorians know and love,” said Jaclyn Symes, state minister for energy and resources.
“From our schools to our sporting centres, the SEC is helping cut energy bills and putting more renewable energy into the places Victorians use every day.”
The State Sport Centres Trust is just one of the SEC’s Victorian governmental customers, with the SEC supplying 100 per cent renewable electricity to more than 4,400 government sites and operations.
“SEC is excited to work with more Victorian businesses to deliver behind the meter solar and battery projects to enable them to take better control of their energy consumption and lower their energy bills,” said Retschko.
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