The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) and Commonwealth Bank have launched a loan program that can be used by businesses in Australia to acquire commercial scale solar power systems.
The CEFC and Commonwealth Bank have signed a Master Funded Participation Agreement (MFPA) where both parties have committed to $50 million dollars each in funding the Energy Efficient Loan program.
The loans typically range between $500,000 and $5 million and are assessed under CEFC project eligibility criteria.
The Energy Efficient Loan is designed to help businesses upgrade existing equipment or install new equipment to reduce energy costs and can be used to finance up to 100 per cent of purchase price; allowing businesses to preserve working capital. The equipment being financed usually acts as the security for the loan.
Given the nature of the partnership arrangement, the Commonwealth Bank says the program can offer finance at “exceptionally competitive rates” that may not be available elsewhere.
With the cost of commercial electricity supply on the rise throughout the nation, local companies are beginning to take more of an interest in installing solar panels.
According to commercial solar provider Energy Matters; if a business is paying more than 20 cents per kilowatt hour (day rate) for electricity; then a solar power system sized to daytime consumption can pay for itself in as little as 5 years.
As good quality solar panels have a serviceable life of decades, this translates to a huge reduction in medium to long term operational costs.
More information on the Energy Efficient Loan can be viewed here (PDF).
The program isn’t the only show in town when it comes to support for installing commercial scale solar in Australia – Energy Matters has a list of rebates, grants and incentives available for commercial projects here and further information can be obtained by contacting the company’s commercial team on 1300 553 213.
