In May 2023, the Australian Government announced a $1 billion Household Energy Upgrades Fund to fast-track energy efficiency retrofits of Australian homes. The Fund will be administered by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) working with delivery partners such as banks, non-bank lenders and energy retailers to offer discounted consumer financial products to help households improve the energy performance of their homes. These could include green home loans, green personal loans, and other approaches such as on-bill financing.

On November 16, ASFI held a webinar to learn how the HEUF can help accelerate home energy upgrades for Australian homes and hear international examples of home retrofit finance – what works, what doesn’t, and how to design for success.

Grace Tam, Head of Consumer Finance at the CEFC provided an update on the HEUF. Then experts from leading industry bodies and financial institutions in the UK and US spoke to the range of finance approaches that are being deployed in those jurisdictions and beyond.

Topics

• Green mortgages for home retrofits
• On-bill financing through energy retailers
• “On-property” or “PACE” financing that is attached to the property not the home-owner
• Supporting low-income households to access the benefits of energy efficiency
• Stimulating household demand for energy efficiency
• Safeguarding consumers against risks such as unsafe installation
• And the role of the broader eco-system – including policy and funding – to support a functioning market for home energy efficiency finance.

Speakers and Resources

Grace Tam

Head of Consumer Finance, Clean Energy Finance Corporation

• Clean Energy Finance Corporation Slides

Emma Harvey-Smith

Programme Director, Green Finance Institute

• Green Finance Institute Slides

Bruce Mast

Principal, Ardenna Energy

• Inclusive Utility Investments Slides

Bill Peterson

Senior Lending Office and Director of Climate Lending, Amalgamated Bank

• Amalgamated Bank Slides

Erika Moreira

Residential and Green Mortgages Propositions Lead, Barclays

Jayson Uppal

Sr. Director, Products & Markets, PosiGen