Our home electrification boom has an equity issue |
Australia is electrifying fast.
Rooftop solar and batteries, heat pumps and reverse-cycle air-conditioning are becoming mainstream.
Done well, this cuts emissions, lowers bills and improves comfort. Done badly, it widens inequality.
Right now, the boom mainly rewards households who can pay upfront, control their home and navigate a complicated market. Many renters and low-income households are locked out.
Electrification is framed as consumer choice – replace appliances, chase rebates, compare quotes, choose an installer.
In practice, the system favours people with money, time and decision power.
Evidence from a long-running Victorian home energy support service shows information alone cannot overcome structural barriers.
Sustained, multicomponent support can improve energy, financial and wellbeing outcomes for households facing vulnerability.
That inequity is already visible in the data on energy hardship. Energy Consumers Australia reports one in five households is vulnerable to, or experiencing, energy hardship, with renters disproportionately affected. It also finds many households that meet multiple hardship indicators are not accessing available supports.
Regional and rural communities are increasingly exposed to climate extremes. State of the Climate 2024 reported rising heat and a lengthening fire weather season.
These risks land differently across the country. Australian Bureau of Statistics data show people........