Grant winners announced for New Energy Jobs Fund

Victorian Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio has announced the second-round winners of the $20 million New Energy Jobs Fund grants.

The fund offers grants of between $20,000 and $1 million to support new energy technology projects that support the uptake of renewable energy, reduce emissions and assist community groups to develop their own projects. More than 50 applications were received for round two, resulting in 21 successful projects receiving a total of $6.7 million in grants.

Hepburn Shire Council was one of the grant winners, receiving $650,000 to implement the first stage of an innovative waste-to-energy system. The project is expected to create up to 10 ongoing full-time jobs for the region.

In the first stage of the $2.4 million project, the council will divert more than 2000 tonnes of food waste from landfill sites each year, leading to a $280,000 reduction in annual waste disposal costs. The first stage is expected to be completed by 2020, with the second stage set to investigate injecting the generated methane directly into the gas network.

For more information about the fund, click here.