Happy Easter holidays from YEF!
We hope you had a lovely long Easter weekend and found some time to recharge. It’s been a productive few weeks for the YEF team, with a range of initiatives and events keeping us busy. Here’s a brief look at what we’ve been up to lately, along with a glimpse of what’s ahead:
- Melbourne Community Electrification Roadshow continues with its second last month of events,
- we released our club partners for our new project Sport & Spark,
- the Darebin Energy Upgrades Program progress so far is in,
- Rewiring Australia has released their 'Community Electrification Handbook',
- Finn Buchhorn participated in ANU's 4th Annual Future of Neighbourhood Batteries Conference,
- Indigo Power's new blog post discussing smarter energy use at home and
- the Vehicle-Grid-Network has a new insights report, learn about the key takeaways.
HIGHLIGHTING | Melbourne Community Electrification Roadshow – April events
The Melbourne Community Electrification Roadshow continues with three more exciting events in April.
This project is supported by the Community Electrification Engagement Program, delivered by Sustainability Victoria on behalf of the Victorian Government.
You can read more about our upcoming events over on our LinkedIn newsletter.
What's on this month:
- HAWTHORN | Does a battery make sense for me? | Saturday 18 April 2026 | 10am-12noon | Hosted by Electrify Boroondara, Hawthorn Arts Centre
- BRIGHTON | Electric Vehicle Mythbusting | Thursday 23 April 2026 | 6-8:30pm | Hosted by Bayside Climate Crisis Action Group, Brighton Town Hall
- RICHMOND | Electrifying Apartments | Wednesday 29 April 2026 | 7-8:30pm | Hosted by Electrify Yarra, Jack Dyer Pavillion Richmond
ANNOUNCING | Sport & Spark club partners
Sport & Spark provides funding for sports clubs to host events or activities for their communities, while also providing households with a fun and accessible way to learn about home electrification. This includes solar, efficient electric heating and cooling, electric appliances and information about available rebates, all shared through trusted sporting environments.
After a huge response to our expression of interest YEF has selected 12 clubs to partner with us on this exciting project.
- Altona Hockey Club
- Footscray Rangers Football Club
- Hume Tennis and Community Centre
- Melbourne City FC Community Club
- Northern BMX Club
- Point Cook Football Club Inc.
- Truganina Lions Football Club
- Upfield Soccer Club Incorporated
- Williamstown Cannons Basketball Club
- Williamstown Seagulls FIDA Football Club Inc.
- Wyndham Basketball Association
- Yarraville Seddon Eagles
UPDATING | Darebin Energy Upgrades Program
Yarra Energy Foundation has been delivering the Darebin Energy Upgrades Program in partnership with Darebin City Council, helping Darebin residents make their homes and businesses more comfortable, energy efficient and affordable to run, while reducing their household emissions.
Since launching in February this year, the program has achieved:
- 65 energy upgrades including electrification, draught proofing and insulation installations
- The most popular upgrade has been split systems with a total of 15 installed in Darebin.
Darebin City Council are offering additional rebates to eligible residents to assist with the upfront cost of upgrades.
In addition there is a $220 gas disconnection rebate if you are removing the last gas appliance in your home through this program. This rebate is available to any Darebin resident, however, it is limited to the first 30 households.
If you live in Darebin and are interested in upgrading your home, check out the website for more information or to register for a free quote.
ANNOUNCING | Rewiring Australia release their 'Community Electrification Handbook'
Rewiring Australia's new handbook provides practical advice for community groups seeking to run successful electrification programs. It recognises that there are many different barriers to electrification. Community groups can be most successful when they have specific strategies to tackle their chosen issue.
The handbook covers everything from creating a program plan, program models, engagement strategies to helpful case studies.
YEF's very own Hume Home Energy Upgrades Program features as a case study, showcasing the delivery of 4,555 upgrades through the program. After running our own electrification program some key takeaways from the handbook that resonated with our own experiences were:
- Community-led approaches and partnerships are critical to scaling electrification.
- Clear goals and local context improve program success.
- Incentives and financing reduce upfront cost barriers.
- Education and trusted communication drive uptake.
Here at YEF we encourage the development of these kinds of resources and are glad to see Rewiring doing such an awesome job!
ATTENDING | Future of Neighbourhood Batteries Conference
Our Project Manager, Finn Buchhorn, attended the Australian National University, alongside industry experts, government representatives, and community champions.
Interestingly, the discussions weren’t just about neighbourhood batteries, but also very much about the future of our energy networks.
Key takeaways:
- Distribution Network Service Providers (DNSPs) were strongly represented (although none from Victoria).
- Zak Rich from AEMC canvased the “first major reform in the NEM era”: an evolution of DNSPs from managing poles and wires to a dynamic system (referred to as Distribution System Operators, or DSOs).
- A key question was how to make network value streams available to third parties, improve data visibility, and break down the walls between DNSPs and their customers.
- Multiple DNSPs flagged a need to move to a TOTEX (Total Expenditure) model, rather than a CAPEX (Regulated Asset Base) model, so that the third-party solutions could be part of their long-term planning.
- It seemed that energy retailers could have a much larger role to play in a more dynamic, more flexible, and “DSO” era. Retailers can manage resources like solar, batteries, and electric-vehicles and importantly are the interface with the energy customer.
Well done to all the organisers, with special thanks to Marnie Shaw and the Australian National University.
SHARING | Smarter energy at home: it's all about when and how you use it
Batteries, EVs and daytime charging: An Energy Shapers case study.
Indigo Power has released a very interesting blog post which contributes to the changing narrative around "self-consumption is always best", towards a more 'co-optimised' residential setup.
They use their own Energy Shapers plan in the case study. It highlights the benefits to the customer as the plan is designed to respond to the current changes in the energy market, 'higher solar production, lower electricity prices in the middle of the day, and sharper peaks in the late afternoon and evening'.
However, it also explains the benefit to the retailer, not in the form of more customer revenue but from lower load variability and therefore lower risk management costs.
The blog post adds to a bigger sector wide discussion that YEF also sees as highly important, the need for behavioural change of when and how we use energy so the uptake of renewable energy can continue to increase.
ADDRESSING | The coordination challenge for Vehicle-to-Grid
A new insights report published by the Vehicle-Grid-Network (VGN) says Australia’s growing fleet of electric vehicles presents a major opportunity to support the energy transition through bidirectional charging.
However, the report says scaling vehicle-to-grid (V2G) is not just a technology challenge, but a coordination one. Specifically, that we need progress on standards, safety, regulation, market design, and consumer engagement.
Key gaps today include interoperability, certification pathways, market signals, and consumer protections. The VGN is helping bridge these gaps by bringing together Australian leaders from industry, business, government, and community to identify priority areas for action.
YEF is pleased to be part of one of the inaugural working groups through the VGN, with our focus on the consumer journeys and participation. VGN is a three-year project led by Climate-KIC Australia and the UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures, funded by ARENA, Race for 2030, and industry partners.
SHARING | Our Services
Find out more about the services that Yarra Energy Foundation offers including:
- Feasibility studies
- Community Engagement
- Community battery strategies for local councils
- Consulting & advice
- Project management
- Solar & electrification programs
We are a small team of extremely passionate energy experts with decades of combined industry, governmental, business, and sustainability experience.
MORE:
Yarra Energy Foundation acknowledges the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung as the Traditional Owners of this country, pays tribute to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Yarra, and gives respect to the Elders past and present.