The National Sustainability in Business Conference will be held in Brisbane from the 23-24 March 2017.
Mrs Debbie Firestone, Program Leader – Sustainability at Tweed Shire Council will join us to discuss ‘From A $4.5m Annual Power Bill to Energy Self-Sufficiency? Tweed Shire Councils Energy Practices and Plans’.
Debbie Firestone
With an annual electricity bill of over $4.5m to power over 52 services, 700 employees working across 390 sites, an elected body representing over 40,000 ratepayer shareholders and a population of over 92,000 residents, the Tweed Shire Council faces the full range of energy opportunities and challenges inherent to any business:
– bringing energy charges down cost-effectively and within strict operating parameters of our equipment
– being as efficient as possible with the power we use
– aligning our energy policy with stakeholder expectations
– pursuing a long-term renewables vision through strategic and tangible steps
Debbie’s presentation will share Councils energy management efforts:
– Avoiding demand charges and using less
Energy use and demand charges have reduced significantly at several of Councils main sites. Between 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 Council reduced its power use by 405 and 456 megawatt hours respectively, saving over $500,000 in demand charges during the same period.
– Taking control of our data
A spreadsheet, affectionately known as zEUS, has been developed in-house to help Council keep its finger on the pulse of power use, costs, tariff rates and times.
– Going renewable
Councils resolution to be self-sufficient in renewable energy has sparked the development of a Renewable Energy Action Plan to describe how, where, when and funding options to pursue its renewable energy aspirations.
Working together with leaders in our local energy scene, we support and benefit from regional partnerships to make change happen:
– Condong bagasse-fired co-generation plant
– 90+ kW installations at local businesses Aldi, Stone and Wood and Madura Tea
– Australia’s first community-owned power retailer and regional bioenergy studies.
For more information on the 2017 National Sustainability in Business Conference and to secure your spot today, please visit the conference website.
