2023 was a monumental year at Brighte, from receiving $2 billion in finance applications to expanding our government schemes. We have been lucky enough this year to work with so many Aussie households, businesses and governments to accelerate their sustainability journey, so here are some of the highlights:
Enabling the transition
Australians are on board with the energy transition, making the switch to electric and investing in sustainability upgrades which help them combat cost of living pressures as well as drive transformational change.
This year Brighte turned eight and since launching in 2015, we have helped more than 150,000 households transition to clean energy, enabling more than $2 billion of home electrification and efficiency equipment to be financed and accessed sooner by households.
Easing the cost of living pressure
Cost of living is top of mind for all Australians, with efficient and cost-effective sustainability solutions such as solar and batteries, making significant inroads.
Brighte’s research shows customers can save $1,000 per year on average on their bills by installing solar. To date, Brighte has helped our customers wipe off a whopping $320m from their energy bills.
*(Deloitte Research, 2022)
Driving change with impact
Brighte financed solar installations now add up to 1,040 MW of clean capacity - around 50% the capacity of the old Liddell coal-fired power station. That's almost enough energy to power 350,000 three-person households for an entire year - or run 3 million fridges! The even better news is that these installations could now offset over 1.2 million tons of CO2 each year.
Extending sustainability to strata
Ensuring no one is left behind, Brighte can now provide solar to apartments, extending sustainability solutions to a significant part of the Australian community.
Owner’s corporations can now apply for a combination of grants and loans in the ACT to facilitate solar solutions. The program’s impact is expected to be significant, with more than 2,100 apartments set to benefit from the installation of rooftop solar panels
Leading the transition
Brighte participated in Electrify Parliament Day hosted by the Smart Energy Council.
Held at Parliament House in Canberra, this saw our CEO Katherine McConnell advocate for zero-interest loan schemes to help with the affordability and accessibility of sustainable upgrades.
Showcasing Brighte on the big screen
Brighte CEO and Founder, Katherine McConnell featured in the candid documentary series 'Founder', detailing the stories of some of Australia’s most successful tech innovators.
Available for rent on Apple TV, Prime Video and Google Play, the series also featured Canva’s Melanie Perkins, SafetyCulture’s Luke Anear and Fred Schebesta from Finder.
Following the making of this documentary, Katherine has been a guest speaker at a number of startup conferences including The Tech Council, SXSW, x15Ventures and TankStream Labs.
Supporting scheme expansion to add impact
Launched in 2021, the ACT Sustainable Household Scheme which offers 0% interest loans of between $2,000 to $15,000 to eligible households, has now reached over ten per cent of all eligible households.
With almost 20,000 applying for the scheme, this year the ACT Government committed an extra $80 million to the Scheme taking the total program funding to $280 million. It also added other sustainability solutions to the scheme including insulation and e-motorbikes.
Partnering to make batteries more affordable
In 2023, Brighte partnered with Origin Energy, Australia’s largest energy provider, to help make batteries more affordable for households across Australia.
Households receive a $1,500 sign-up bonus and also have the opportunity to earn credits on their energy bill when connecting their battery to Origin Loop, Origin’s virtual power plant (VPP).
As the exclusive finance and enablement partner for Origin Loop, the offer is available through Brighte’s network of accredited installers to help more homes create, share and manage power with a Loop-connected solar battery.
Administering schemes for greater impact
We celebrated the one-year anniversary of our partnership with the Tasmanian Government as the administrator of the Tasmanian Energy Saver Loan Scheme. Together with the government, we have helped Tasmanians install a range of energy-saving appliances and equipment including solar panels, batteries, insulation and energy-efficient white goods.
More than 3500 applications have been approved totalling more than $30 million in loans helping Tasmanians make their homes more energy efficient and reducing their energy bills.
Over 80% of vendors in the scheme are Tasmanian, with companies found across the state. From Burnie to Beaumaris, Tasmanians can find a vendor on the Brighte marketplace to help them with their energy needs.
Backing diversity at TAS TAFE
Brighte is proud to have launched the Brighte Women in Energy Scholarships at TasTAFE, to be awarded to female students who demonstrate a commitment to study and to energy efficiency, electrification or household clean energy.
The scholarships will provide places for three women electricians and/or apprentices to undertake the Certificate III in Electrotechnology at TasTAFE Tasmania.
Brighte sees this as an opportunity to support Tasmanian students and encourage participation in what has primarily been a male-dominated industry, where currently only about 3% of students in this course are female.
Financing for success
This year, Brighte reached a new level of maturity in our funding and refinanced our first public deal from 2020. The assets from this refinance underpin Brighte Green Trust 2023-1, settled in August. This freed up $200 million, now available for further solar, home electrification, and consumer net zero initiatives.
Celebrating award wins with gratitude
In 2023, Brighte continued to receive strong industry recognition for its products, people and impact, further reinforcement that Brighte is delivering real change:
- B&T's Women Leading Tech Awards Sustainability Crusader award
- Finder Awards Green Lender of the Year - third year in a row
- Finnies Positive Impact Award
Taking everyone on the journey
We understand the importance of taking everyone on the journey with us, educating and informing customers, the industry, regulators and governments on how we can better partner to achieve our common goals.
This is why we have continued our strong presence at industry forums this year including presenting at the SEC Conference, the All Energy Summit, the SEC QLD and the ECC Summit.
Collaborating with our team in the Capital
Brighte Meets is Brighte’s quarterly strategy and people-focus forum where all our staff come together to participate in team building, vendor visits, listen to our leaders and importantly, to have fun.
For the first time, this year we took Brighte Meets offsite and went to Canberra for three jam-packed days of inspiration, collaboration and planning.
We strongly believe that investing in our team makes us even stronger and more focussed to deliver on our mission.