Power price positive step but big issues remain

Sugarcane farmers’ group CANEGROWERS has welcomed as a win a new option to help Queensland irrigators manage high electricity costs but says more work is needed to fix all the issues in the power pricing system.

“The confirmation from the Queensland Competition Authority that a new control load tariff, called T34, will be available as a primary tariff to farmers from 1 November is a victory for irrigators and comes on the back of years of lobbying from CANEGROWERS and other farm groups,” CANEGROWERS CEO Dan Galligan said.

“I urge growers to carefully assess if T34 is right for them to ensure their business can benefit from a lower price for power but also not be affected by the risk of service delivery interruptions.”

CANEGROWERS is calling for the parties campaigning in the Queensland State Election to commit to a suite of agricultural electricity tariffs capped at 16c/kWh. T34 is close to that mark with a usage charge of 17.295 c/kWh and a daily fixed change of $1.18081 per day (both ex-GST).

Bundaberg grower Mark Pressler was part of a joint trial of the control load tariff run by CANEGROWERS and Energy Queensland and says he was impressed.

“The tariff delivered some worthwhile cost savings for my business and the service interruptions were manageable,” he said. “I’m looking forward to Ergon finalising its plan to send us text notifications so we know ahead of time when the power might be cut.”

While T34 is a positive step, Mr Galligan said it was not the solution to all of the problems with electricity pricing and CANEGROWERS would continue to campaign for an end to network gold plating practices and profit gouging by governments.

“Significantly more change is still needed to the electricity pricing system and we are calling on the Labor and Liberal National parties to commit to more action to improve affordability for farmers after the 31 October election,” Mr Galligan said.

“Successive Queensland Governments have used the electricity network as a cash cow and a form of farm business taxation by pulling out dividends worth up to $1.5 billion each year.

“Power companies have also been rewarded for overcapitalising on the network, what’s known as gold-plating. The network charge is about half of a power bill so when this goes up, profit margin of irrigators gets squeezed.

“Both of these systemic issues are yet to be addressed but if they are, and we see significant price cuts for irrigators across the board, production on farms will increase.”

The CANEGROWERS State Election 8-point plan lists the high costs of electricity and water as one of the obstacles holding the Queensland sugarcane industry back from realising its full potential.

Media comment: Dan Galligan | CANEGROWERS CEO | 0429 707 809

More information: Neroli Roocke | CANEGROWERS Communications | 0418 871 881

Note: The QCA has found indicative annual savings for typical users moving to T34 from other irrigation tariffs of:

$768 moving from T62

$1,116 moving from T65

$2,487 moving from T66

Supplementary review: Regulated retail electricity prices 2020–21

New T34 electricity tariff cuts irrigation costs

Farmers say a newly announced electricity tariff will help irrigators better manage high energy costs, but says more work is needed to fix all the issues in the power pricing system.

The Queensland Competition Authority confirmed this week that the new control load tariff T34 would be available as a primary tariff to farmers from November 1.

QCA found indicative annual savings for typical users moving to T34 from other irrigation tariffs of: $768 moving from T62; $1116 moving from T65; and $2487 moving from T66.

CANEGROWERS chief executive officer Dan Galligan said the announcement came on the back of years of lobbying from CANEGROWERS and other farm groups.

“I urge growers to carefully assess if T34 is right for them to ensure their business can benefit from a lower price for power but also not be affected by the risk of service delivery interruptions,” he said.

Mr Galligan said in the run-up to the October 31 state election, all political parties needed to commit to a suite of agricultural electricity tariffs capped at 16c/kWh. T34 is close to that mark with a usage charge of 17.295 c/kWh and a daily fixed change of $1.18081/day (both ex-GST).

Bundaberg grower Mark Pressler he was impressed by joint trial of the control load tariff run by CANEGROWERS and Energy Queensland.

“The tariff delivered some worthwhile cost savings for my business and the service interruptions were manageable,” Mr Pressler said.

“I’m looking forward to Ergon finalising its plan to send us text notifications so we know ahead of time when the power might be cut.”

While T34 is a positive step, Mr Galligan said it was not the solution to all of the problems with electricity pricing and CANEGROWERS would continue to campaign for an end to network gold plating practices and profit gouging by governments.

“Significantly more change is still needed to the electricity pricing system and we are calling on the Labor and Liberal National parties to commit to more action to improve affordability for farmers,” Mr Galligan said.

“Successive Queensland Governments have used the electricity network as a cash cow and a form of farm business taxation by pulling out dividends worth up to $1.5 billion each year.

“Power companies have also been rewarded for overcapitalising on the network, what’s known as gold-plating. The network charge is about half of a power bill so when this goes up, profit margin of irrigators gets squeezed.

“Both of these systemic issues are yet to be addressed but if they are, and we see significant price cuts for irrigators across the board, production on farms will increase.”

CANEGROWERS State Election 8-point plan lists the high costs of electricity and water as one of the obstacles holding the Queensland sugarcane industry back from realising its full potential.

Energy Savers audit shows increased efficiency & major savings for Mackay farm

By CANEGROWERS Mackay

A cane farm at Seaforth near Mackay could see increased production yields and major energy cost savings, thanks to recommendations of an audit conducted by CANEGROWERS Mackay through the Energy Savers Plus Program Extension.

The audit is one of 180 farm energy audits completed on farms throughout Queensland under the Queensland Farmers’ Federation (QFF) program funded by the Queensland Government.

CANEGROWERS Mackay Chairman, Kevin Borg, said the energy audit program had been a great way for growers in the Mackay and Plane Creek regions to identify ways to reduce their farms’ energy consumption and costs at a time when energy and water prices are continuing to rise.

“With the help of CANEGROWERS Mackay’s agricultural economist, John Eden, and electrical engineer, Ron Coomer, the recommendations have been tailored to the needs of each particular cane farming business and have included a mix of more efficient equipment, introduction of solar energy and a tweaking of farm management practices,” said Mr Borg.

“Cash is tight in the industry at present because of low world sugar prices, and the cost of electricity and water, but some recommendations, such as checking that a pump is working efficiently or changing a tariff, are relatively inexpensive and can achieve impressive cost savings.

“Moreover, in this particular case, through purchasing new and second hand equipment and working to improve yields through more effective use of water and some farm management changes – to increase returns, not just reduce energy costs – the payback period for the total investment can be reduced to under two years.”

QFF Chief Executive Officer Dr Georgina Davis said the Energy Savers audits delivered options for farmers to reduce their energy consumption and Carbon emissions as well as make important bottom line savings and productivity gains with the assistance of a co-contribution grant.

“More positive results are expected as the program moves to an implementation phase. We encourage participants to consider their farm audit and take up the available rebate to make improvements and realise energy savings.”

Mackay cane farm audit

Harvesting 9500 tonnes of cane a year, the 144 ha Mackay farm is statistically above the zonal average for the region. However, interrogation of the available farm data found that even though yields in this zone have remained consistent over the past 10 years, there has been a slight decrease on this particular farm due to the crop mix being weighted towards older ratoons. Changes in rainfall distribution across the district in recent years have not helped, and the irrigation infrastructure on the farm has proved unable to meet crop demand at critical times.

The grower had been using a 10 cm (4 inch) winch irrigator driven by two dam pumps which delivers water at a constant high pressure. The audit recommended introducing two variable speed drives (VSDs) on the pumps as well as replacing one of the pumps with a more efficient pump with a higher flow rate to enable the operation of two low pressure booms working in tandem.

For a total investment of around $47,000 to purchase two second hand low pressure booms and install the VSDs, the estimated energy savings are expected to be 30,710 kWh per year at a cost saving of $7,979 per year, paying back the investment in under six years.

In addition, the audit recommended a 30 kW ground-mounted solar system to provide an offset against running the pumps continuously on the grid and to increase savings because of the ability to irrigate during the day. The audit factored in the export of energy to the grid when the farmer is not irrigating, further lowering his energy bill.

This investment of around $21,000 (after Small-scale Technology Certificate rebates) would be paid back within 3.5 years thanks to energy savings of 60,000 kWh and cost savings of $6,002 per year. The audit also recommended an immediate tariff change from T62 to a combination of T20 and T33, saving a further $1,635 per year.

Due to the restructure of the irrigation infrastructure and improved efficiencies there is now the ability to increase water use from 159 ML to 265 ML. Water Use Efficiency has improved from 7.7 t/ML to 8.8 t/ML. The grower has the added benefit of irrigating the crop up to the sixth ratoon profitably. This compares with the situation prior to the audit, when irrigation returns were negative after the third ratoon.

By following all recommendations of the audit, pumping costs across all systems would be reduced on average from $117.73 per ML to around $37.89 per ML, even with the increase in water use from 1 ML/ha to 2 ML/ha.

Best of all, thanks to the productivity gains, the expected payback period for the total estimated costs of all improvements decreases from 4.7 to 1.6 years, and with a Return on Investment of 64 per cent.

For more information about the Energy Savers Plus Program Extension program or how to improve your on-farm energy efficiency, visit the website: www.qff.org.au/energysavers or contact the energy savers team by email: energysavers@qff.org.au.

The Energy Savers Plus Program Extension is delivered by the Queensland Farmers’ Federation with support and funding from the Queensland Government.

Cutting water and electricity costs on Burdekin cane farm

A BURDEKIN cane grower used technology to significantly reduce his water usage and in turn-electricity costs in a move that’s paying dividends.

Leon Franchina’s efforts to improve the efficiency of irrigation water has seen his water usage reduce by 140 megalitres a year and cut pumping costs by a third.

Mr Franchina installed scheduling tool Gdots on representative blocks to monitor soil moisture across the farm so irrigation timing could be matched to crop water use and soil type.

He also addressed soil trouble spots on the property by laser leveling and adding ash and mill mud to improve sandy areas in the paddock.

This increased soil water holding capacity has helped to combat deep drainage and improve irrigation efficiency.

As a result Mr Franchina is applying small irrigation volumes more frequently rather than large volumes less often.

“I have significantly reduced water use, from up to four megalitres per hectare to less than one megalitre,” Mr Franchina said.

“I’m also irrigating more efficiently saving two to three days out of an 11-day irrigation cycle.

“This is definitely a more scientific approach to delivering what the crop needs in the way of water. I’m only putting on what the plants need a day.

“Receiving real time information from the GDots means we can make informed decisions around irrigation scheduling, which is also improving business efficiency.”

Mr Franchina said the assistance received through The Reef Alliance Program Phase II had made it possible for him to fast track his irrigation improvements by at least five years.

The program has supported Mr Franchina to develop an irrigation improvement plan, as well as tailored extension and agronomic support.

“Through this project I’ve been able to reduce water usage by 140 megalitres per year and cut my pumping costs by a third,” Mr Franchina said.

NQ Dry Tropics sugar cane project officer Michael Hobbs said the project was helping Mr Franchina to achieve real outcomes on the ground and assisting to implement changes to farming practices faster than growers otherwise would have been able.

“Mr Franchina has been able to improve irrigation efficiency and save water without sacrificing yield,” Mr Hobbs said.

“He has been able to improve irrigation application efficiency by incorporating crop growth measurements and water use data into the irrigation schedule, and adjusting irrigation volumes to suit the amount of water used by the crop since the last irrigation.”

Better distribution of energy to be explored via microgrids

Rather than farmers exporting power and then buying it back down the line, it’s hoped a federal government grant to the Queensland Farmers Federation to look at the flow-on benefits of microgrids for irrigated agriculture will find ways to better distribute energy resources within networks, and save money.

Along the way, unsustainable electricity costs that are eroding the viability and productivity of many agriculture businesses may be able to be minimised.

The QFF has received $654,807 from round one of the federal government’s Regional and Remote Communities Reliability Fund to assess options for microgrids to offer a more stable network, increase network utilisation, increase the uptake of on-farm solar energy, and cut costs in the rural and irrigation sector.

If they come to fruition, microgrids could deliver a number of benefits to irrigators around the state, decreased costs being chief among them but also clarity for future electrical infrastructure investment decisions, as well as the installation of smart meters to allow for better monitoring of energy.

Mackay and the Pioneer Valley, Stanthorpe, St George, and Bundaberg farming systems are being targeted in Queensland, along with the Hunter Valley in NSW.

QFF project manager Andrew Chamberlin said microgrids offered a new model for the utilisation of energy that would hopefully reduce costs.

“Microgrids are a collection of distributed energy resources and users – pumps and sheds – aggregated behind a meter that can be islanded, or operate independently of the network,” he said.

“They should mean farmers will be able to use more of their own solar power across different assets.

“For example, one could be storing lots of broccoli in a big shed but then they’ve sold it all, so an irrigator down the road can use the solar power he’s generating and not needing.”

Because some days are cloudy, and farmers have full coldrooms on varying days, it’s hard to match consumption with power generation, but it’s expected that microgrids will allow farmers to use power on other infrastructure without losing it to the grid, or enable the farmer next door to use it.

Mr Chamberlin said blockchain technology may have a role in working out how transactions would get paid for.

“The technology is there to have meters on each property, and to work out contract rates too,” he said.

QFF will partner with Cotton Australia, ReAqua and Constructive Energy to deliver the project.

ReAqua has installed Australia’s largest solar diesel hybrid pumping system, in NSW.

Mr Chamberlin said there were a lot of assumptions to test.

“A power line system cost might be replaced with a management system cost for example.”

QFF has two years in which to undertake the project, some of which would be taken up in assessing which farms to include that showcased best practice examples, and installing meters.

Project managers also want to monitor microgrid attributes over a full year to test it across all seasons.

It will use a lot of real-time meters that farmers can access their phones, and see whether they’re saving power or not.

“We’re excited about this,” Mr Chamberlin said.

“This is one of a few things that will help energy issues for farmers.

“Microgrids allow them to optimise their own power, and people’s systems will all be talking to each other.”