Locals flick the switch
POSTCODE 3216 has been identified as a solar hotspot as an increasing number of people look for more energyefficient ways to power their homes.
New research from Powercor lists the postcode, which encompasses Highton, Belmont, Grovedale, Waurn Ponds, as having the fourthhighest number of solar panel installations in the state.
As of January this year, 5274 solar installations had occurred in the area.
Across the state, the number of households with rooftop solar increased by 16 per cent in 2021 to 175,000 in the Powercor region.
Father-of-two Behzad Falahati switched his Highton house to solar energy in December last year. Since making the switch, Mr Falahati said he had saved almost $600 and had not had to pay any power bills.
“We did it because of climate change, basically,” Mr Falahati said. “I wanted to do my bit and am worried about what the future would look like for our kids.”
Mr Falahati said some neighbours had installed solar power after finding out how much money the family was saving. “I’d say do it in a heartbeat. That’s what my neighbour ultimately did,” Mr Falahati said.
Since October, Powercor crews have conducted more than 700 individual items of work on 53 zone substation supply areas and other electrical infrastructure across all parts of its network, including Geelong, Mildura, Cobram, Bendigo, Hamilton, Koroit, Ballarat, Horsham, Shepparton and Warrnambool.
Powercor said it now approves
more than 90 per cent of applications from customers seeking to export excess solar onto the network – up from 60 per cent in some areas in February 2021.
Solar customers who currently have a limit on the
amount they can export are invited to contact Powercor to reapply for an export agreement based on the greater capacity now available on the network.
More details at powercor.com.au/solar-energy.