Question 1

Is the VEN worth it for me?

Accepted Answer

That depends. If you are wanting to save money, then you really need to have an annual excess solar export of about 5,000 kWh. We get this number by assuming you might sell energy with a 6c (or better) return than a 0c feed-in tariff, and 6c x 5,000 = $300). Since EnergyLocals (https://energylocalsretail.com.au/enosi/)has the added cost of a monthly subscription of about $258 per year, you need to sell enough energy to offset that $258. That is, about 5,000 kWh.

This does get a bit tricky because this assumes that you can sell all your excess at that price. We are trying to find a local Flinders retailer who might buy all we can sell. But all is not lost if we can’t! There is a market available throughout Australian eastern states. And the fall back if no one buys your energy is the EnergyLocals default plan which returns a feed-in-tariff between 1.5 and 12 c/kWh. That’s not bad in itself!

The best way to find out your annual solar export is to log into the United Energy website (https://myenergy.ue.com.au/s/login)(or maybe your own energy retailer's website). For a more detailed breakdown, have a play with the online tools we have produced for you.(https://www.flinderszero.org.au/tools)

Question 2

What if I have no solar?

Accepted Answer

No solar? No worries! There is plenty of excess solar for sale (partly because so many people involved in this scheme are the keen early adopters with solar - and they have too much in the middle of the day!). So you should have no trouble finding offers below the regular energy rates - even if from people beyond Flinders.
But most importantly - get some solar! The VEN makes having solar in Flinders and surrounds more profitable and if you have your main home in Melbourne you can just send it up!

Question 3

If I have no solar and just want to buy energy, how much will I save?

Accepted Answer

You need to buy energy and a cheaper price and save at least enough to offset the annual fee of about $258. Since most of the cheaper energy will come from other people's solar, it will only be available during daylight hours. So you need to work out how much you could save if you purchased all your energy between say, 9 am and 4 pm at a reduced rate.

In our Energy Cost Analyser (https://www.flinderszero.org.au/energy-analyser)we have a power company labelled 'VEN (buy @ 23c & sell at 6c then 29'. If you download your meter data From United Energy (the above link tells you how to do this) and choose this company, it will do the calculation for you using your actual energy usage for a whole year. When it is not buying cheap solar energy it defaults to the standard EnergyLocals plan. You can edit the rates to play with other scenarios (e.g. only having cheaper energy between 10am and 2pm in winter).

Question 4

What if I have a battery?

Accepted Answer

Do you have a battery? That’s great! Depending how it is set up, this should give you energy to use after the sun goes down. If you have a big enough one, such that you have more energy than you need for overnight, then you can export late in the day at peak times when the export price is higher. The EnergyLocals (https://public.energylocalsretail.com.au/public/Victorian_Energy_Fact_Sheet_ENE690058MR_Electricity_CZ_6.pdf)default offer (https://public.energylocalsretail.com.au/public/Victorian_Energy_Fact_Sheet_ENE690058MR_Electricity_CZ_6.pdf)pays 12 c/kWh between 4 pm and 9 pm. If you can set your battery to be in ‘export to grid’ mode between those times, there is potential to save even more!

Question 5

Can I share with my Melbourne House?

Accepted Answer

You bet! This is a great idea and a great incentive to get more solar on your Flinders house and send it up to town! The ‘sharing’ is not completely free though. You still have to pay network charges (can’t avoid ‘em) so your price should come down from (say) 29 cents/kWh to 17 c/kWh (~12c is the real cost of the energy). You must pay the EnergyLocals subscription for both houses too. You are essentially ‘selling’ your excess energy to yourself for zero cents (plus network charges).

Question 6

Can I share with a friend beyond Flinders?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You can share with anyone who is enrolled in the EnergyLocals (https://energylocalsretail.com.au/enosi/)VEN plan.(https://energylocalsretail.com.au/enosi/) It means that they have to pay the EnergyLocals subscription just like you ($21.49  pm or $258 pa). They will have to work out if it works well for them.

Question 7

How much am I likely to save?

Accepted Answer

That depends on so much! You can determine your profit over a range of 0 to 12 c. You can find out how much you typically export, month by month if you like, by going to your energy retailer’s page or by using our analysis tool.(https://www.flinderszero.org.au/tools) You might choose to ‘sell’ at 6 c/kWh (saving your buyer 6 c/kWh as well) in which case multiplying your annual export by 6 c will give you an indication of your savings. But someone has to buy your energy. That might be someone in Flinders, or maybe further afield. If no one wants it you will receive the EnergyLocals standard rate (https://public.energylocalsretail.com.au/public/Victorian_Energy_Fact_Sheet_ENE690058MR_Electricity_CZ_6.pdf)(between 1.5 and 12 c/kWh, depending on the time of day of the export).

Question 8

Should I do this if I won’t save much?

Accepted Answer

That’s your decision but a powerful motive to join in is that your energy will be used in Flinders. This might be helping out a Flinders local, but also reduces the wastage every time energy is sent along our high voltage transmission lines to other areas of Victoria.

Question 9

What if there are not enough sellers in Flinders?

Accepted Answer

The EnergyLocals software (Powertracer (https://enosi.energy/powertracer)by E(https://enosi.energy/powertracer)nosi)(https://enosi.energy/powertracer) will automatically look for energy elsewhere in the VEN that matches your requirements. The fallback is to buy using EnergyLocals (https://public.energylocalsretail.com.au/public/Victorian_Energy_Fact_Sheet_ENE690058MR_Electricity_CZ_6.pdf)standard rates. (https://public.energylocalsretail.com.au/public/Victorian_Energy_Fact_Sheet_ENE690058MR_Electricity_CZ_6.pdf)

Question 10

What if there are not enough buyers in Flinders?

Accepted Answer

It is more likely that we will have shortage of buyers rather than sellers (solar owners are very keen to join schemes like these!). If that happens the system will look for buyers from further afield that match your requirements. Failing that, the fallback is to buy using EnergyLocals (https://public.energylocalsretail.com.au/public/Victorian_Energy_Fact_Sheet_ENE690058MR_Electricity_CZ_6.pdf)standard rates.(https://public.energylocalsretail.com.au/public/Victorian_Energy_Fact_Sheet_ENE690058MR_Electricity_CZ_6.pdf) We (FZCC) are working hard trying to get some of our more energy hungry local businesses into the VEN to help avoid this..

Question 11

I am not in Victoria, can I still use the FZCC analysis tools?

Accepted Answer

Possibly! The detailed interval meter data provided by energy distributors is typically provided in a format called a NEM12 Report. This should be the same in Victoria and NSW. The NEM12 format is an industry standard defined by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) for communicating interval metering data.

But we haven’t been able to test how easy it is to get these interval meter data from distributor other than United Energy, which provides power to the Mornington Peninsula, Vic. We suggest that if you are not on the Mornington Peninsula (and hence don’t have United Energy as your distributor) then explore your distributor's web site to see if they offer a feature to download a NEM12 Report. Don’t confuse a distributor (United energy, Powercor, Citipower, Jemena, etc.) with your retailer (EnergyLocals, RedEnergy, AGL, PowerShop, Diamond Energy, etc.). Your retailer might provide similar downloads of yearly energy use, but it probably won’t be in the required NEM12 format.

Question 12

I have solar but sometimes it is cloudy. Is the VEN useful to me at those times?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it could be. There are people in the VEN from SA right up to QLD. So it's possible that there might be some cheaper energy available interstate when your solar is having a rest. It's very hard to predict the impact of this as it depends when you need power, who is producing at that time, what others are doing, etc. But the PowerTracer system tries to work these things out.

Question 13

How much energy do I need to buy or sell to cover the EnergyLocals $22 subscription fee?

Accepted Answer

Good question. And its complicated because it depends on what time of day you are able to buy or sell energy, who else is 'in the market' trying to do the same thing at that time, and, of course, the weather - how much excess solar is there at that time. But here's a very rough guide: if you either buy or sell about 5000 kWh during a year, and if you get that at a price that is about 6 cents better than normal, then you should be able to cover the $264 charged by EnergyLocals. There are lots of ifs and buts there, but it's a rough guide for a start!

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