The City of Melbourne has facilitated a power purchase agreement for businesses across the city, as part of the second wave of the Melbourne Renewable Energy Project (MREP 2). This is the second purchasing group we’ve brought together, and includes seven large energy users: RMIT University, Deakin University, CBUS Property, ISPT, Fulton Hogan, Citywide Asphalt, and Mondelez International.
Tango Energy will provide 110 GWh of renewable electricity per year to the purchasing group, over 10 years. The electricity will be used to power 14 shopping centres, nine office buildings, seven educational campuses, and four manufacturing facilities across greater Melbourne.
From July 2020, the purchased wind power will be produced primarily by the Yaloak South Wind Farm near Ballan, with the remaining energy coming from other wind farm projects in regional Victoria. The MREP 2 deal is equivalent to providing enough renewable energy to power more than 22,000 Australian households a year. It will reduce greenhouse gas pollution by 123,000 tonnes a year, which is comparable to taking nearly 28,000 cars off the road every year. Together, MREP 1 and 2 have reduced the equivalent of five per cent of the city’s emissions.
Where MREP 1 established a new wind farm and saw many local councils and cultural institutions become powered by renewable energy, in facilitating MREP 2, the City of Melbourne is educating and empowering large energy users to understand the role they can play in achieving our ultimate goal: for all of Melbourne to be powered by 100 per cent renewable energy.
The MREP approach enables cities, corporations and institutions to take an active role in securing renewable electricity supply and taking action on climate change. It is also critical to cities such as Melbourne achieving their emissions reduction targets.
As an Australian first, we’ve learned a lot along the way. So, we’ve produced a guide to share our observations and knowledge, to help other organisations navigate large-scale renewable electricity procurement.
Image: Pacific Hydro Australia
Melbourne Renewable Energy Project One
The City of Melbourne created the first Melbourne Renewable Energy Project (MREP 1) in 2017. It was the first time in Australia that a group of local governments, cultural institutions, universities and corporations collectively purchased renewable energy from a newly built facility.
The fourteen members of that buying group combined their purchasing power to support the construction of a 39-turbine, 80 MW windfarm at Crowlands, near Ararat, owned and operated by Melbourne-based clean energy company Pacific Hydro. The windfarm now supplies energy to power town halls, bank branches, universities and street lights across Melbourne. It’s thanks to MREP 1 that our operations are powered by 100 per cent renewable energy.
MREP 1 members committed to purchase 88 GWh of electricity per year from the windfarm under a long-term power purchase agreement; and because the wind farm will generate more than the purchasing group's needs, it will bring additional renewable energy into the market. It also provides long-term price certainty, enabling customers to mitigate the risk of increased energy costs in a volatile market.
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