Community energy project switches into gear

The MyTown Microgrid project in the Victorian town of Heyfield has completed its second phase. MyTown is a three-year community-led initiative that seeks to understand if a microgrid could provide reliable, affordable and sustainable energy to the town. 

Phase one laid the groundwork for a detailed, data-led microgrid and energy solutions feasibility study. Project partners The Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF), energy technology experts Wattwatchers and the Heyfield Community Centre, consulted with members of the Heyfield community and produced a collection of reports on initiation, data deployment, community engagement and business model options.

The reports are designed as resources for communities embarking on their own energy projects. They provide practical guidance and lessons from the experience of MyTown Microgrid initiative in Heyfield. 

Phase two of MyTown relates to energy literacy – using data to understand Heyfield’s energy requirements and usage. It also focuses on building tools for a faster, easier, and more cost-effective way for other communities to understand and adopt microgrids.

In this phase, 96 Wattwatchers energy monitors were installed across 76 sites: 

There is an additional five commercial and 10 residential planned sites remaining. 

The devices will allow energy users to view both real-time and historical data charting their energy use. Knowing how much and when you use the most energy can be the first step in optimising energy flow by changing your habits.   

The data from the deployed Wattwatchers devices will be shared with the entire community via a dashboard at the Heyfield Post Office. This way, all of Heyfield’s residents can be involved in knowing how energy is being used within the community and can get behind the project. 

 Phase three of MyTown, which involves a technological and economic assessment of the project thus far, now begins in earnest.