What are Green Power Products?

Green Power is electricity from renewable energy such as wind, solar or hydro that is independently accredited. It is a very simple way to help reduce dependency on fossil fuels. Almost all electricity retailers in Australia offer a GreenPower product that lets you purchase between 10% and 100% of your electricity from renewable sources.

Increasing the purchases of GreenPower in your community is one way to support Australia’s renewable energy sector. GreenPower products are accredited and audited by the NSW government on behalf of the National Green Power Steering Group to ensure that the amount of Green Power purchased matches the additional renewable electricity supplied.

Benefits of promoting Green Power Products

• Available to everyone so it is an easy way to increase renewable electricity.

• Great for renters, apartment owners and others who can’t access rooftop solar.

• A simple way for solar owners to offset the fossil fuel electricity used when the sun isn’t shining

• Will be the best and simplest option for some people.

Some challenges of promoting Green Power Products

• Green Power can easily be confused with carbon neutral and other claims to reduce greenhouse emissions. You will need to be confident about some of the differences and about any specific retailer products you choose to promote.

• Green Power isn’t perfect and it's worth researching the criticisms and understanding the limitations. Perpetuating support for companies with continued commitment to fossil fuels is one of the big criticisms. Greenpeace’s Green Electricity Guide ranks these companies last.

• Green Power is accounted for using renewable energy certificates. It does not match the time of day or the location of your electricity use.

• Green Power typically costs an extra 5c/kWh so it can add $250/yr to an average electricity bill (5,000kWh /yr).

When is promoting Green Power Products a good choice?

Promoting Green Power fits well with other community energy activities:

• It will help you learn about retailing and tariffs.

• It can form part of any initiative targeted at households and businesses.

• It can be a simple action that community members promote to each other.

Project examples for promoting Green Power Products

https://renew.org.au/buy-greenpower-from-renew/

Other guides and resources

GreenPower official website Explains how Green Power sources are accredited, shows the impact of the Green Power program and identifies the generators that provide the electricity. Promotes the Green Power tick as a symbol of an “independently audited, two tiered system, managed by the government.’

Clean Energy Council Green Power FAQs These FAQs make the case for buying Green Power and highlight the need to be cautious around green electricity products that don’t carry the Green Power tick.

Greenpeace Green Electricity Guide The Guide ranks all retailers against their commitment to a renewable energy transition. This includes assessing the general and green electricity products that each retailer offers.