A key part of Australia's plan to decarbonise - is supposed to be getting off gas and on to renewable energy. But there's lingering questions over what's involved, the degree of difficulty - and the cost. One town in western Australia is showing it can be done - having largely made the switch away from gas.
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00:00Esperance, on the south coast of Western Australia, is known for its white sandy beaches and turquoise
00:08water, a drawcard for tourists, surfers and grey nomads.
00:13But in energy circles, Esperance is becoming known for something else.
00:16It's the town that's getting off gas.
00:18The energy transition program that we've put in place is really a microcosm of what Australia
00:24and indeed the world is trying to do.
00:26In the past couple of years, more than 300 homes and much of the town's population have
00:31been switched from gas to electricity.
00:33Among them is Sharon Vermaes.
00:35In place of a gas stove, she now has an electric induction cooktop.
00:40And instead of a gas hot water system, there is an electric heat pump.
00:44A new wind and solar farm north of Esperance is helping to power this extra demand for
00:48electricity.
00:49Experts say it's a window into Australia's future.
00:52That was effectively necessary because there'd be some structural issues to do with the gas
00:57supply.
00:58But it's a good example of necessity being the mother of invention, really.
01:03But it's not all plain sailing.
01:05Some homes and businesses have been unable to get off gas, forced to use bottles.
01:10And a new gas-fired power plant still provides about half the town's power and is needed
01:15even when the wind is blowing and the sun is shining.
01:18Another challenge of getting off gas is simply the cost.
01:22Electric appliances like induction stoves and heat pumps don't come cheap.
01:26And some households' power supplies need to be upgraded as well.
01:30By some estimates, each house here in Esperance has cost between $10,000 and $15,000 to electrify.
01:37The trick here is that because it's difficult to do, doesn't mean we don't do it.
01:43The fundamental challenge is that if we want to address climate change, then we have to
01:48get off gas.
01:49However, the savings are really, really quite large.
01:52So some of our customers experienced about a 60 per cent saving off their bill, and an
01:57average customer more like 30 to 40 per cent.
02:00Sharon Vermeer agrees costs can be steep.
02:02It is thankful the WA Government helped foot the bill in her case.
02:06Well, we would have had to go and borrow the money and whatever.
02:10My husband's retired now, so it would have been hard.
02:14The challenges of changing technologies.