Energy efficiency program gets a brand new name for 10th birthday

The biggest energy efficiency certificate scheme in Australia is getting an overhaul after 10 successful years, with a new name and updated regulations.

The Victorian Energy Efficiency Target Scheme will now be known as Victorian Energy Upgrades to better reflect what happens under the program.

The Essential Services Commission regulates participation in the program which provides households and businesses with access to discounted energy-saving products through accredited providers.

The commission’s Jeff Cefai says the new name aims to remove confusion for energy consumers, product providers and the broader public.

“The name change better aligns our administrative and regulatory work with the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, which adopted ‘Victorian Energy Upgrades’ as the public-facing name in late 2017,” he said.

The name change also coincides with an update of the regulations that support the program recently completed by the department along with an overhaul of public facing information on the commission’s website.

Mr Cefai says over 10 years, the program has generated more than 50 million energy efficiency ‘certificates’*.

“This equates to 50 million tonnes of greenhouse gas that would otherwise have been released into the atmosphere.

“Under the program, there were more than 100,000 installations of energy efficient products in homes and businesses across Victoria in 2017 alone.

More information about the program is available at www.esc.vic.gov.au/veu

*Every upgrade or improvement generates Victorian energy efficiency certificates, which represents one tonne of greenhouse gas abated. The commission regulates the creation of these certificates by program participants.