The Queenstown Electrification Accelerator (QEA) is about to kick in to a solar trial, aimed at ensuring residential and commercial renters can benefit from solar power, despite not owning the roof.
QEA business electrification lead Lowri Swygart says, till now, there hasn’t been a straightforward way to ensure the energy transition is inclusive of residential rental properties, for example.
‘‘As part of the Queenstown Electrification Accelerator . . . [we] realised this is a topic that came up time and time again, so we thought we’d put together a trial with a couple of different options of how we can help people through the process, then work out what are the barriers, if we’ve got solutions in place, and how can we make it as easy as possible for renters to have access to low-cost solar energy.’’
Swygart says about 60 people have already registered their interest in participating in the trial— the majority of those residential landlords.
They’re hoping they’ll be able to get a ‘‘bulk discount’’ from a solar installer for those participating, though she notes that could also be applied to others who want to sign up for solar via QEA’s website.
While landlords participating in the trial will still have to pay for the solar system — which could range from $10,000 to about $30,000 — she says it’ll be a ‘‘shared benefits model’’.
‘‘The landlord purchases the solar system [and] the tenant has lower-cost energy — so they still pay for any kilowatt hours that they’ve consumed from solar, for example, but it’s at lower costs than the grid.
‘‘And then that money goes towards paying off the system for the landlord.’’
Swygart notes, too, solar systems add value.
Studies suggest they can increase the property value by about 1.5%, and they also become more desirable for renters.
More importantly, though, Swygart says it’s key to have energy resilience in Queenstown-Lakes properties given the risks of the Alpine Fault magnitude 8 (AF8) rupture.
QEA’s looking to close off applications for the ‘solar for renters trial’ within the next two months and expects it, once systems are installed, to last about a year.
‘‘One of the solutions we’ve got available is through . . .Octopus Energy.
‘‘We’re working with them on their product and helping them. . .trial it, and then [will] hopefully bring other retailers on board as well.
‘‘The next step is working on how we can scale it, and make sure it’s sustainable in the long term.’’
- Registrations of interest for the trial are open to any landlord or tenant in the Queenstown-Lakes, via qea.nz/solar-for-renters
