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2020 award winners

Congratulations to the winners of the 2020 Clean Energy Council Awards. Read on to find out more about the 2020 winners and finalists in the following categories:

  • Outstanding Contribution to Industry
  • Innovation
  • Community Engagement
  • Marketing and Communications

Outstanding Contribution to Industry Award winner - Giles Parkinson

Giles Parkinson won this year's Outstanding Contribution to Industry Award. As the founder and editor of the renewable energy industry's flagship industry publication RenewEconomy, Giles has shown passion and dedication to a well-informed and truthful national conversation on the transition to clean energy. In a media environment that is changing, challenging and increasingly partisan, Giles has stood out for his strong communication and detailed exploration of the complex issues confronting the clean energy sector.

Innovation Award winner - Allume Energy

Sol Share 1992 x 874 pixels

Allume Energy won this year's Innovation Award for the SolShare, a behind-the-meter solar sharing technology that enables solar power from a single rooftop PV system to be shared by multiple units within a building. When deployed on a community housing apartment building in Melbourne, the SolShare met 39 per cent of residents' total electricity demand and reduced each apartment's electricity bill by over $155.

Community Engagement Award winner - Tilt Renewables

2020 community engagement 4

Tilt Renewables won this year's Community Engagement Award for the extensive benefit sharing plan it implemented for the community surrounding the Dundonnell Wind Farm. The plan included the installation of a mini-grid, a road safety fund, a major contribution towards safe housing for women fleeing domestic violence and education funding for residents. In addition to maintaining Tilt Renewables’ social licence in the region, the plan will create a lasting legacy by helping the prevention of suicide, supporting vulnerable communities and creating educational opportunities.

Marketing and Communications Award winner - Future Energy Skills and Ellis Jones

2020 mar comms 1

Future Energy Skills and Ellis Jones won the Marketing and Communications Award for the Know your Battery campaign, a strategy to generate consumer awareness of, and demand for, accredited solar battery electricians by communicating the benefits of hiring qualified tradespeople. Using a multi-channel strategy that included a campaign microsite, social media marketing and a paid partnership with The Guardian, the campaign achieved almost 25,000 page views. It also successfully increased consumer and industry awareness of accredited tradespeople and training.

2020 Award Finalists

Innovation Award finalists

  • 5B partnered with Nomadic Energy to deploy its MAVERICK technology at a Western Australia mine site. MAVERICK is a pre-wired, pre-fabricated solar block that can be folded up, rolled out quickly and redeployed if required. The system, which was delivered through a unique five-year solar lease agreement, was the fastest deployed megawatt-scale solar project on a mine site worldwide and resulted in a per unit electricity cost reduction of approximately 40 per cent per kWh.
  • Allume Energy deployed its SolShare technology on a community housing apartment building in Melbourne. SolShare is a behind-the-meter solar sharing technology that enables solar power from a single rooftop PV system to be shared by multiple units within a building. In the first six months of the technology’s deployment, the Solshare system met 39 per cent of residents’ total electricity demand and reduced each apartment’s electricity bill by over $155.
  • Western Power conducted a trial rollout of six stand-alone power systems (SPS) in Western Australia’s Great Southern region. The trial was an overwhelming success, with the systems found to be more reliable and safer than poles and wires, require less maintenance, provide considerable cost savings and deliver real on-ground benefits for customers. The trial was so successful that Western Power has commissioned an additional 52 SPS in 2020 and will be rolling out a further 100 units in 2021.

Judges

  • Jonathan Law - Research Leader, CSIRO Energy and Mineral Resources, CSIRO
  • Ariel Liebman - Director, Monash Grid Innovation Hub, Monash University
  • John O'Brien - Partner, Energy Transition & Decarbonisation, Deloitte Financial Advisory

Community Engagement Award finalists

  • ACCIONA launched the Neighbourhood Benefit Program for the community surrounding the Mortlake South Wind Farm. The program provides households located within 4 km of a wind turbine with a pre-loaded EFTPOS card that they can use to purchase goods and services at participating local businesses. The program was a key element in ACCIONA achieving and maintaining a social licence to operate in the area by ensuring that the benefits of the wind farm are shared within the local community.
  • Beon developed the Women in Solar Program as part of its community engagement process for the Bomen Solar Farm. The program is designed to improve the participation rate of women in the construction of renewable energy projects by focusing on recruitment, training and retention. During the solar farm’s construction, the program provided training and employment to 11 women and established several initiatives to encourage and support women to pursue a career in renewable energy.
  • Sustainability Victoria established the Community Power Hub pilot program to support and facilitate the development of community energy projects in regional Victoria. The program assisted community organisations looking to install a renewable energy project by providing administration, coordination and technical support. This program helped 15 projects proceed to the implementation stage in the 2019/20 financial year. An evaluation undertaken for the first two years of the program found that more than $14.5 million of value was generated, representing a 13-to-1 return on the government’s investment in the program.
  • Tilt Renewables implemented an extensive benefit sharing plan for the community surrounding the Dundonnell Wind Farm. The plan included the installation of a mini-grid, a road safety fund, support for local not-for-profit organisations, community organisations and mental health providers, a major contribution towards safe housing for women fleeing domestic violence and education funding for residents. In addition to maintaining Tilt Renewables’ social licence in the region, the plan will create a lasting legacy by helping the prevention of suicide, supporting vulnerable communities and creating educational opportunities.

Judges

  • Andrew Dyer - National Wind Farm Commissioner
  • Amy Kean - Director, Stride Renewables
  • Mel Tadhunter - Associate Communications and Engagement Consultant, Jacobs

Marketing and Communications Award finalists

  • Future Energy Skills and Ellis Jones developed the Know your Battery campaign, which was designed to generate consumer awareness of, and demand for, accredited solar battery electricians by communicating the benefits of hiring qualified tradespeople. Using a multi-channel strategy that included a campaign microsite, social media marketing and a paid partnership with The Guardian, the campaign achieved almost 25,000 page views. It also successfully increased consumer and industry awareness of accredited tradespeople and training.
  • GEM Energy developed a communications and marketing strategy to educate consumers on the value and long-term benefits of basing their rooftop solar purchasing decision on quality rather than price. The strategy used a combination of online and traditional channels, including Google ads, YouTube tutorials and print and radio distribution. In the nine months to April 2020, the strategy reached 525,000 people on Facebook, while the YouTube tutorials were viewed more than 7000 times.
  • One Stop Warehouse developed a reward promotion that provided customers with miniature versions of branded One Stop Warehouse products for every $5000 spent. When matched in the right combination, the miniatures could be redeemed for a range of prizes. Designed to onboard new leads and introduce unfamiliar products to customers, the promotion awarded 282 prizes valued at more than $150,000 to customers, and One Stop Warehouse saw a 30 per cent increase in sales over the promotion period.

Judges

  • Emily Findlay - Communications Manager, ANZ, Tesla
  • Andrea Gaffney - Group Manager Communications and Corporate Affairs, Australian Energy Market Operator
  • Fiona Ivits - Senior Media Advisor, Climate Media Centre