The State Labor Government is helping to lower power bills and keep the lights on with a new neighbourhood battery in Maryborough.

Member for Ripon Martha Haylett today visited the Maryborough Salvos Church & Community Centre to hear first-hand how the battery is helping to cut power bills and redirect funds back into essential community services.

Thanks to the Allan Labor Government’s 100 Neighbourhood Batteries Program, a 45 kilowatt (kW)/56 kilowatt-hour (kWh) neighbourhood battery has been installed at the site.

At the Maryborough site, the project is expected to generate annual savings of $5,282 – cutting energy costs and free up funding for vital frontline services that support the most vulnerable people in the community.

The Salvation Army is installing 22 neighbourhood batteries across Victoria including Salvos Stores, Foodbanks, Domestic Violence Refuges, Emergency Crisis Accommodation, Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Centres and community centres.

There are now neighbourhood batteries in 60 local government areas, aimed at cutting power bills and boosting energy resilience.

The program is helping achieve Victoria’s target of at least 2.6 gigawatts (GW) of energy storage capacity by 2030 and 6.3 GW by 2035 – enough energy to power around half of Victoria’s homes at peak energy use.

This is part of Labor’s record investment in renewables which has helped Victoria consistently achieve the lowest wholesale power prices and lowest average households power bills in the country.

While Liberal leader Jess Wilson was busy planning her attendance with One Nation’s Barnaby Joyce at a misinformation convention for their anti-renewables agenda, Labor was building Victoria’s energy future.

Jess Wilson’s Liberals recently announced they’ll make it harder to do business in Victoria with new planning barriers to renewable energy projects. Further proof you can’t trust them. They’ll send power prices skyrocketing and leave Victorians in the dark.

Quotes attributable to Member for Ripon Martha Haylett

“Every dollar saved on energy bills is a dollar local organisations like the Salvos can reinvest into supporting those who need it most.”

Quotes attributable to Minister for Energy and Resources Lily D’Ambrosio

“We know the cost of living is tough for many Victorians, that’s why we’re building neighbourhood batteries that help lower power bills for households and communities.”