- FCA welcomes new Developer Rating Scheme from the Federal Government
- FCA welcomes software tool that will inform landowners of their renewable energy hosting potential; giving farmers more info when dealing with clean energy companies
- FCA called for Dyer Engagement Review recommendations to be adopted in February 2024
Farmers for Climate Action (FCA), representing more than 8,400 farmer members, warmly welcomes the announcement of the Renewable Energy Developer Rating Scheme by the Federal Government.
FCA had called for the scheme to be implemented last year as it had become clear that farmers were struggling to sort credible, long term project owners from other companies which had not treated landowners well.
FCA CEO Natalie Collard said the scheme would allow farmers and rural residents to get more information on companies aiming to enter their region.
“More information for farmers and rural communities is a great thing,” Ms Collard said.
“More information helps farmers and rural communities sort the wheat from the chaff among the many clean energy companies out there. We want any companies not prioritising farmers and rural communities gone so the energy shift benefits farmers and their communities.
“Typical payments to farmers are around $40,000 per wind turbine per year extra income on top of farming, and around $1500 per hectare per year for solar panels whilst the farmer can continue to farm sheep under them, so we don’t want farmers to miss these opportunities. Many clean energy companies are paying community benefits of around $1000 per megawatt of capacity per year, which is around $1 million a year for a big wind farm, so we don’t want communities to miss out on that either.”
The Federal Government also announced a free software tool to help farmers assess the clean energy hosting potential of their farms – giving farmers more information for any negotiations they choose to enter with clean energy companies.
“When farmers are informed about the full earning potential of their land, everyone wins,” Ms Collard said.
“It’s great that politicians are speaking openly about the huge opportunity clean energy is offering farmers who choose to host it. Farmers often don’t get to choose whether or not they host coal seam gas wells, but with clean energy, they can choose to take the extra income or refuse the offer. Choice is a beautiful thing.”
