City of Albany council to vote on $2.6m LED street light switch after State Government funding bid fails

The City of Albany council will vote on a plan to switch nearly 4000 street lights with energy-saving LEDs at a cost of $2.6 million after its application for a State Government grant was knocked back. At a committee meeting last Wednesday, councillors indicated their support for a recommendation to replace the City’s Western Power-managed street lights with LEDs and allocate $2.615 million across their next two budgets. It comes after the council in June last year approved the bulk replacement plan on the condition that the City was able to secure $625,000 from the State Government’s Clean Energy Future Fund. However, it was revealed this month the City’s grant application had been unsuccessful. With an average cost of $690 per light, the City expects it will take eight years to payback the $2.615 million. In an officer’s report tabled ahead of last week’s meeting, it revealed the City’s current streetlights incur an estimated annual cost of $729,000. LEDs would use 80 per cent less energy than the current lamps in the street light network. “LED street lighting has been proven to make roads safer, save money by using energy more efficiently, and cut greenhouse gas emissions by more than half,” the report said. Albany is part of a group of five councils that has backed a “super-trial” to speed up the replacement of street lights with LED across WA to reduce power consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and costs. The councils have already commissioned a business case and financial feasibility study supporting the viability of replacing the councils’ combined 47,000 luminaries with LEDs, representing 17 per cent of the streetlights in the Western Power grid. “Council may choose to not support this proposal, and continue with the gradual retro fit of street lights with LED luminaires as existing luminaires fail,” the report said. “Most luminaires would be replaced after 8-10 years, but could take up to 40 to 50 years to replace them all. “This option does not reduce the City’s greenhouse gas emissions and could impact the City’s ability to achieve net zero by 2030. “To date only six per cent of fittings have been replaced with LEDs.” The officer’s report said the City would continue to apply for funding for the replacement project.