‘Little’ trust hails funding for project cutting power bills

• Author: Emma Bernard
• Published date: 05 September 2022
• Publication title: Whanganui Chronicle

Te Rangiao Trust has been approved for $127,018 of government funding for their project “Kāinga o te Rā” to install solar panels and batteries on five low-income rental properties

“We’re just a little trust, so when we applied for it we thought we probably weren’t going to get it,” trustee Leanne Hiroti said.

“But it’s really exciting and we’re absolutely stoked.”

She said others should definitely go for it.

“If you’re successful it can make such a difference to your power bills.”

The estimated annual savings per household of between $700-$850, which could shave off up to $70 per power bill for one household, Energy and Resources and Housing Minister Megan Woods said.

This is one of 16 government-funded energy projects to produce clean, affordable and locally generated power to 150 households.

Hiroti said the trust applied for the first two rounds of funding unsuccessfully but after more research, it applied successfully for this third round.

“We applied because we want whānau in their homes to not be afraid to turn a heater on because of a cost.

“Hopefully it will free up some of their money for other living costs.”

The Whanganui trust owns several residential homes across Whanganui city, providing low-cost rentals to families and trust beneficiaries for over 10 years.

Hiroti said within the next year each of the five rental properties would have a five-kilowatt on-grid system, consisting of an array of solar panels and a battery for each home.

“The systems we’re installing have a battery backup to make sure there is an emergency power supply for each of the homes, then any excess power not used in the home will be diverted to the battery, and once the battery is full...