Australian Government to fund retro-fitting of existing commercial buildings

Senator Kim Carr, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, recently launched the Australian Government's $90 million Green Building Fund. 

"The program aims to reduce the green house gas emissions from the day-to-day running of commercial office buildings. These buildings are a major contributor to the nation's emissions, making this a critical initiative", Senator Carr said. 

"The Green Building Fund is the third and final part of the Australian Government's $240 million Clean Business Australia initiative, announced in the Budget.  Clean Business Australia is all about the Rudd Government working with business to tackle the challenge of climate change.  The program will provide grants to owners of existing commercial office buildings for retro-fitting and retro-commissioning projects that reduce energy consumption and emissions. It offers dollar-for-dollar support, with grants ranging from $50,000 to $500,000.  Eligible projects can include upgrades to office lighting and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems. Improved glazing and shading, or investment in monitoring equipment and control systems to improve the building's energy efficiency may also be covered. 

"I'm especially keen to encourage projects that involve small, lower grade buildings, where there is real scope for improvement. The program has been designed to support this.  Grants are also available to develop the knowledge, skills or capability of those involved in operating commercial office buildings, to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions. Grants of up to $200,000 will be available to relevant industry organisations, on a dollar-for-dollar basis." 

The Green Building Fund program is one of the three elements of the $240 million Clean Business Australia initiative. The other elements are the Climate Ready Program and the Retooling for Climate Change Program.

The Green Building Fund ($90m over 4 years) aims to reduce the impact of Australia's built environment on green house gas emissions, by reducing the energy consumed in the operation of existing commercial office buildings.

The program will provide grants through two streams of activity.

Stream A

Targets owners of existing commercial office buildings. It supports retro-fitting and retro-commissioning of these buildings, to reduce base building energy consumption. Grants ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 are available, for up to 50% of project costs.

Stream B

Targets relevant industry associations. It will provide a limited number of grants to develop the knowledge, skills or capability of those involved in the operation of commercial office buildings, to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions. Grants of up to $200,000 are available, for up to 50% of project costs.

Round 1 for both streams of the program closes at 5pm local time on 15 January 2009. The closing dates for later rounds will be published shortly.

Information seminars on the Green Building Fund will hosted in most capital cities in November. To attend one of these free seminars, please register your interest online or contact the AusIndustry Hotline.

Further information about the Green Building Fund please contact the AusIndustry hotline on 13 28 46 or email hotline@ausindustry.gov.au.

The leading association for building and construction professionals, the Australian Institute of Building (AIB), has welcomed the announcement of a $90millon green building fund by the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr.  “Numerous research reports have shown that significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are possible by making our buildings more energy efficient. This new fund provides the incentives to encourage building owners to retrofit the nation’s existing commercial building stock,” said Troy Williams, AIB Chief Executive.  

AIB has observed that clients are demanding that new office buildings are more energy efficient with developers and buildings meeting this demand. In this context, the problem was going to be with the existing building stock.  “The Green Building Fund provides the financial incentives necessary to ensure that not only new buildings have improved energy efficiency, but also existing office buildings too,” Mr Williams said.  AIB is working with senior building and construction professionals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the built environment.  “The institute has been a long-standing supporter of various initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the built environment. We welcome this initiative that provides added incentives to make our buildings more efficient,” Mr Williams said.

The grants are competitive and applications from eligible entities are assessed against three criteria:

• Potential green house gas emissions reduction (worth 60% of total rating)
• Demonstration potential (20% of total rating)
• Project design and management (20% of total rating)

Eligible projects could include:

• common area lighting;
• heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems;
• the building fabric, for example glazing and shading; and
• monitoring equipment, building automation systems and control systems linked to improving the energy efficiency of the building.

David Duncan, CEO of FMA Australia said "This is an excellent opportunity for FMs to consider the life of current plant and equipment and to assess the need for refurbishment in coming years.  With a recent survey from Colliers International identifying that improved environmental building performance was the fourth most cited reason for tenants that were considering moving buildings, the business case for greening your building portfolio has never been stronger.

If you would like more information about the Green Building Fund, please follow the links below.  

Stream A funding customer information guide

Fact sheet

Sample application forms and guidelines for applicants

For more information on how FM Innovations can help you, please contact us.