Reducing costs

As energy prices rise there is increased interest in the use of renewable energy on farms to reduce costs.
But what technology is available? Is there a return on investment? Will renewables suit an individual farming operation?
These are just some of the questions farmers are asking.
To answer some of these questions, an information day will be held on Renewable Energy in Agriculture on July 23 at Orbost’s Lochiel Park, 9.30am-2.30pm.
Speakers on the day include:
– Sandra Jefford and Wilco Droppert from Wilandra Farms. Wilandra Farms is a certified organic dairy farm located in Clydebank. In 2019, Sandra and Wilco completed an energy audit, which started them down the path of energy efficiency and renewable energy. They will give a farmer’s perspective of their journey, lessons learned, return on investment and more.
– Stephen Soutar from Alternative Energy Innovation (AEI). Stephen has more than 40 years of electrical and process control engineering experience.
– Robyn McLean is from GippsDairy. The Ellinbank Smart Farm in Gippsland is Australia’s leading dairy innovation facility. It fast-tracks innovative technology solutions in a research environment and showcases them to the dairy industry. Robyn will showcase some renewable energy projects, specifically wind turbines and pumped hydro.