Press release

The Victorian government has announced a new program to pay landholders who host transmission lines on their properties. 

Under the program, eligible landholders will receive a payment of $8,000 per kilometre, per year, for 25 years.

Community energy advocate, Community Power Agency, welcomed the news but called for more localised engagement around the payment plan along with a co-designed process for other supportive benefit sharing initiatives that are tailored to meet the needs of host communities. 

“It’s a step in the right direction in that the Victorian Government is acknowledging that the community and the landholders really do have an important role to play in enabling this climate critical infrastructure”, Community Power Agency Director Kim Mallee said. 

“But it is essential that the community has a genuine seat at the table when we’re designing these kinds of policies and the way that we roll out infrastructure like transmission lines for the energy transition.”

This framework follows in the footsteps of the NSW government who last year announced a payment plan of $200,000 per kilometre of new transmission infrastructure for landowners, paid out in annual installments over 20 years. 

The Community Power Agency is helping community groups and local governments understand the various types of benefit sharing opportunities associated with the clean energy transition. This collaboration helps to create authentic engagement strategies that have community design at their core.