Merri-bek City Council has a limited number of subsidies available to low-income residents, to help them with the up-front costs of solar.

We recently had a conversation with Merri-bek resident Maria, who received the council subsidy. Growing up in Europe, Maria had been taught the importance of sustainability by her parents. Maria had been interested in solar for a while, being “very much interested in environment protection and energy saving methods in every aspect of daily life. I constantly monitor the way I use energy, maximising energy savings when cooking, washing by choice of efficient appliances.” However, the cost of installing solar was a barrier, so she was looking for a government assisted package. Maria heard about the Merri-bek Council Subsidy initiative through local group ‘Imagine Moreland’ which encouraged her to apply through Solar Savers. 

Maria really enjoyed her solar journey, “from the time I applied and spoke to Katherine from [Merri-bek] Council she just made me feel secure and her guidance was valuable. Then Anthony (the energy consultant) with his lovely, friendly approach and knowledge made it so easy. I would recommend the Solar Savers program to everyone and encourage other Councils to adopt the same initiative.