Funding for over 200 new energy efficient homes

In an Australian-first, not-for-profit community housing provider SGCH and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation will work together to create more than 200 new energy efficient homes.
The CEFC has committed up to $60 million in long-term senior debt to the program which will build new homes and upgrade a proportion of SGCH’s 4,300 existing, older properties with energy efficient technologies.
The program will enable SGCH tenants to benefit from lower energy costs. At the same time, SGCH will reduce the carbon footprint of its extensive housing portfolio, and strengthen its environmental and sustainability credentials in the NSW community housing sector.
CEFC CEO Oliver Yates said the project will accelerate the delivery of more sustainable and energy efficient community housing.
"The CEFC is able to make finance available over a longer period, allowing the benefits of lower operating costs to be passed on to the tenants," he said.
"With an estimated 400,000 social housing households nationwide, it makes good sense to improve energy efficiency and help reduce energy costs for low income households.
"Providing capital in this cost-effective manner will enable SGCH to better meet changing tenant needs and address maintenance needs and operating costs of existing stock which are issues common across Australian social housing systems.”
According to ACOSS, the lowest income households spend 7 per cent of disposable income on energy, compared to 2.6 per cent for the highest income households.
Improvements to lighting, heating and cooling can make a meaningful difference to household energy costs.
"People on low incomes are particularly impacted by rising energy prices, but they lack the capital for energy efficiency upgrades and are more likely to own inefficient appliances," he added.
SGCH Acting CEO, Trevor Wetmore, said the CEFC finance would enable SGCH to build new affordable homes at well above minimum standard in Australia.
CEFC-financed properties will be built to a minimum 4-star Green star rating or a 7-star rating under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS).
“For our tenants who live on low to moderate incomes, the savings they will see in their energy bills can make a real difference,” Wetmore said.
"The more we can save on energy costs, the more we can reinvest into housing for those most in need."