Local businesses are rapidly taking up the opportunity to cut their power bills by installing energy efficient equipment and appliances under the Small Business Energy Saver Program.
Delivered by Sustainability Victoria on behalf of the Victorian Government the Small Business Energy Saver Program is supported by the South East Councils Climate Change Alliance (SECCCA) and member councils who are providing financial incentives to upgrade energy inefficient equipment and appliances.
Local cafe, Éclair in Hampton is one of 13 Bayside businesses to have received an installation through the program with 136 more traders working with SECCA on the Small Business Energy Saver Program.
Éclair’s owner Kazuyo Matsu is delighted with the newly installed fridges.
“We are very happy with the new fridges that we were able to upgrade to through the SBES program. The products are of high quality, are energy efficient and the perfect sizes that work perfectly for our needs,” she said.
“The person who introduced and coordinated the program was always very pleasant, helpful and responded well to all our questions and contact. From choosing the products to the delivery, there were no hassles with any of the processes and I’m very glad I was able to access the program!”
Pictured – Éclair’s owner, Kaz, with the new refrigerated display cabinet on the left, and the new kitchen workbench fridges.
Due to the program’s popularity and high demand from the small business sector, the program has been extremely successful and has been nominated for the ‘National Energy Efficiency Awards 2022’. Many businesses in need have been assisted with upgrading outdated equipment which has been especially useful for the hospitality industry that (in addition to being hard hit by COVID restrictions) often operates with outdated and inefficient equipment due to the high replacement costs.
Up to $2,000 rebates were available for small businesses to upgrade their outdated appliances to more energy efficient and cost-effective products.
Most popular activities taken up during the program:
- Refrigerated Display Cabinets (RDCs)
- Fridges and freezers
- Hot water pumps
- Air conditioning
- Spray valves
Applications for the Small Business Energy Saver Program for Small Businesses have now closed in Bayside however there are a number of alternative energy saving rebate programs still available:
