A common vision shared by Ripley Town Centre developer Sekisui House Australia and energy partner WINConnect is set to deliver winning results for consumers within the masterplanned community.
Ripley Town Centre, in south-east Queensland’s western growth corridor, will boast what is believed to be Queensland's largest high-voltage private community network.
While an embedded energy network such as this may not be a new concept, WINConnect executive chairman Tom Patsakos said Ripley Town Centre is the first-ever township to commission one.
“To my knowledge, there is yet to be an entire town on a community energy network, excluding small mining towns,”
he said.
“The reason it’s not common is because most developers don’t have the foresight that Sekisui House does to plan ahead. Most developers will engage a community energy network after they have already commenced construction and by that stage it’s too late.
“While embedded energy networks have over time been designed to serve the purposes of the developer, our approach is to spread the value generated from the network equitably among key stakeholders, including the community.”
The benefits associated with the private community energy network at Ripley Town Centre are far reaching, from lower tariff costs and tariff protection, to future-proofing for potential advances in sustainability.
Importantly, profits made through the network are invested back into the community—to maintain existing infrastructure and upgrade community spaces, for example.
Sekisui House Australia senior development manager Taku Hashimoto said Ripley Town Centre is making energy more affordable for its consumers.
“Consumers who are currently taking advantage of the network are realising savings of up to 25 per cent, which may increase in time and create further savings through reduced rates and outgoings as the development grows and more sustainable solutions are realised.”
“We have the ability to not only generate energy on site via our solar structures but purchase additional energy at the 11,000-volt bulk rate and feed that power into the network—no energy leaves the community, ” Hashimoto said.
“Ipswich City Council is working with us to grant permission to cross public roads in order to extend the network, which is the first time a local council has ever been involved.”
A private energy sub-station was commissioned at Ripley Town Centre back in 2018 as part of stage one of the masterplan, to service its more than 20 retailers.
The $1.5 billion masterplan vision caters to the projected growth of the region—approximately 133,000 new residents by 2036—and delivers on the requirements of the Ripley Valley Priority Development Area scheme.
The network also makes use of the 480-kilowatt solar panel system positioned on the roof of Ripley Town Centre and its carpark structure, which delivers clean and sustainable energy to the community.
“With less capital expenditure, a community energy network removes the barriers that have historically prevented developers from investing in renewables and allows us to share the benefits of locally produced energy,” Hashimoto said.
“This is a long-term, sustainable solution for Ripley Town Centre. While many developers incorporate solar energy, we believe this private community energy network is a first for a masterplanned community.
“We truly want to be sustainable and use our network to give back to the community while reducing our overall carbon footprint.”
Hashimoto said the ultimate aim is to achieve a net zero energy community where residents, retailers and commercial operators can sell excess energy their asset creates to other players within the community and capitalise on another income stream, with additional savings injected into existing and future landscaping infrastructure and public amenity.
As future stages of the development come to fruition in the coming years, it is anticipated additional substations will be commissioned onto the network to make way for new infrastructure, generating upwards of 8 megavolt-ampere.
WINConnect’s Patsakos describes the partnership with Sekisui House as a “meeting of the minds”.
“We are working collectively to achieve significant benefit for Ripley Town Centre consumers. This includes identifying areas to deliver efficiencies, minimising costs and speeding up our services to the township — these are our driving principles,” he said.
“Sekisui House has been talking to us for a long time about how best to plan and configure the network, and which permits to acquire, so the services are delivered seamlessly.”
Click here to find out more about the Ripley Town Centre masterplan vision.
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