Sydney flicks the switch to 100% green power

All the City’s operations – including street lights, pools, sports fields, depots, buildings and the historic Sydney Town Hall – will now be run on 100 per cent renewable electricity from locally-sourced clean energy.

The switch is projected to save the City up to half a million dollars a year over the next 10 years, and reduce C02 emissions by around 20,000 tonnes a year – the equivalent to the power consumption of more than 6,000 households. Valued at over $60 million, it is the biggest green energy deal of its kind by a council in Australia.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the new agreement will generate jobs, support communities impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and create new opportunities in drought-affected regional NSW.

“We are in the middle of a climate emergency. If we are to reduce emissions and grow the green power sector, all levels of government must urgently transition to renewable energy,” the Lord Mayor said.

“Cities are responsible for 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, so it is critical that we take effective and evidence-based climate actions.

“The City of Sydney became carbon neutral in 2007, and were the first government in Australia to be certified carbon neutral in 2011. This new deal will see us reach our 2030 target of reducing emissions by 70 per cent by 2024, six years early.

“This ground-breaking $60 million renewable electricity deal will also save our ratepayers money and support regional jobs in wind and solar farms in Glen Innes, Wagga Wagga and the Shoalhaven,” Moore added.