esaa announces its 2010 Sustainability Reporting and Innovation Awards winners

29 March 2011

AGL Energy, Geodynamics and Ausgrid are this year’s winners of the Energy Supply Association of Australia’s (esaa) Sustainability Reporting and Innovation Awards.

Entries were judged by a panel of three independent experts comprising Victorian Department of Primary Industries Energy Sector Development Division Director Ralph Griffiths, Latrobe Institute for Social and Environmental Sustainability’s Research Fellow Stephen Muir and Sustainable Investment Research Institute’s (SIRIS) Associate Director of Research, Ben Spruzen.

AGL Energy won this year’s Sustainability Reporting Awards, with Ausgrid and Hydro Tasmania’s entries highly commended.

The judging panel commented on AGL Energy’s strong systematic approach to identifying material sustainability issues and their drivers, supported by a robust framework of targeted metrics to evaluate and track performance.

“Reporting on an intensity basis across asset classes was a valuable innovation and allowed AGL Energy’s sustainability performance to be benchmarked across a wider field,” commented the panel.

The industry innovation award is awarded for the practice of innovation in an area covered by one of the principles of the esaa Sustainable Practice Framework.

Geodynamics’ winning entry was a 1 MWe pilot geothermal plant, expected to be the first step towards the eventual extraction of a possible 6,500 MWe of base-load power stored in granite below the Cooper Basin in South Australia.

The pilot plant is based on a three-stage plan designed to demonstrate Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) power generation at a commercial scale.

In March 2009 Geodynamics achieved Proof of Concept completing the plan’s first stage by demonstrating heat extraction from a two well circulation test via a developed underground heat exchanger.

The current program focus is to commission a 1MWe pilot plant during early 2012 on the path to commercial demonstration.

The judges recognised Geodynamics’ 1MWe Pilot Plant could successfully demonstrate geothermal energy can be produced using EGS technology within Australia. While other small pilot projects exist in other countries, this is the first project of its kind here.

Ausgrid also won the Innovation Award for its Smart Village Trial, incorporating Ausgrid’s Smart Home Project, as the panel said it meets an organisational, industry and societal need in the 21st century.

The Smart Village, Smart Home two-year trial will help up to 700 households in Newington and Silverwater (NSW) reduce their utility bills and carbon impact by providing households with a real-time picture of their energy use, with some being able to turn their appliances on and off remotely.

According to Ausgrid, this project will drive positive behavioural changes around energy efficiency, deliver precise and timely information to customers on their consumption, allow households to reduce their energy and greenhouse gas emissions, identify areas where network operating costs can be reduced, enable Ausgrid to communicate savings tips, discounts and incentives to change the way households consume energy.

AGL Energy’s Sustainability report can be found at: http://2010.aglsustainability.com.au
Geodynamics’ Innovation Award entry is available via the Media Room at: www.geodynamics.com.au
Ausgrid’s Innovation entry is available at: www.ausgrid.com.au.

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Media contact:    Caroline Page     03 9670 0188 or 0421 103 089

The Energy Supply Association of Australia seeks to positively influence government policy decisions to ensure that Australia enjoys the benefits of a safe, secure, reliable, sustainable and competitively priced electricity and natural gas supply.

esaa’s 40-plus member businesses have more than $120 billion in assets and infrastructure investment plans worth over $49 billion over the next five years. The Association is fuel and technology neutral and member businesses have investments across a wide range of fossil fuel and renewable generation technologies.