Sustainable Council
One-third of Council’s electricity use is now powered by the sun!
We’re proud to be leading the way towards a cleaner and greener Hobsons Bay with one-third of Council’s electricity use now powered by solar panels.
In 2023-24, Council generated nearly 3,000 MWh of renewable electricity – the equivalent needed to power over 610 average Victorian households for a year!
This means that of all councils across Victoria, Hobsons Bay is generating the highest proportion of renewable electricity via council-owned buildings.
Solar panels and virtual power
Rooftop solar is connected via the Virtual Energy Network (VEN), which interacts with the electricity grid so that excess renewable energy generated from individual sites can be allocated to other sites that have higher electricity use at different times of the day.
We’ve installed solar panels on 48 Council buildings, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by almost 2,500 tonnes per year – the equivalent of a person flying Melbourne to Sydney about 14,000 times!
This results in substantial savings from reduced energy costs, which is money that Council can put back into the community.
Community benefit
Thanks to the VEN, community groups and organisations including sporting clubs and kindergartens that operate in a Council-owned building have access to the renewable energy generated on-site that feeds into the network.
Residents of Hobsons Bay can take pride in knowing their community facilities are being powered by green electricity. The VEN also offers substantial cost savings – money we can put back into community services and programs.
Additionally, Council supports the community to access renewable electricity through a number of programs, including:
Council's progress can be tracked via Council's public reporting dashboard.