VEET is working, says Clean Energy Council

The Clean Energy Council has hit back at claims that cutting the Victorian Energy Efficiency Target (VEET) would reduce household electricity bills, calling them “wrong and short-sighted”.

According to Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green, the VEET is actually helping households save on their power bills, delivering an average benefit of $308 over the first five years of the program for those in the scheme, while supporting thousands of jobs.

“The program is getting through to those that need it most and previous studies have shown that it is working well at a low cost,” Green said. “Two out of every five households in the program have below-average incomes and a third are on some form of welfare.

“The government has done substantial work on improving the safeguards in the scheme and improving its efficiency, and for that it is to be congratulated. But all this will be wasted if it were to abolish a scheme that it doubled following the last election.”

The VEET scheme has benefited approximately 1.3 million households and businesses, Green says, as well as supporting thousands of Victorian jobs - from businesses that install energy-efficient products to those providing consulting services to manufacturers and suppliers.

Green has called for the ‘secret’ modelling released to the media to be released for public scrutiny.

“Previous studies of the scheme show that the target is working well at a low cost and provides a net public benefit, both in terms of household savings and the economic activity it creates. I am confident that any objective study will show the same thing,” Green said.

“VEET reduces the upfront costs of investing in energy-efficiency products, which is particularly important for low-income households who are struggling with their bills.”