SYDNEY Trains has reached a four-year agreement to purchase renewable energy certificates to offset the network’s electricity use and cut the nearly 700,000 tonnes of CO2 it produced last year.
The deal, covering Sydney Trains and New South Wales (NSW) TrainLink services, was made with Snowy Hydro-owned Red Energy which generates clean energy from wind and solar.
Earlier this year former NSW transport minister, Mr Andrew Constance, revealed the government would push to power the train network with green energy by 2025.
His successor, Mr Rob Stokes, said the latest agreement means the state will have “smashed” the target by more than four years in “becoming the first heavy rail network in Australia to transition to completely green energy.”
Sydney Trains chief executive, Mr Matt Longland, said that the switch to green electricity was agreed through the agency’s existing electricity supply agreement with Red Energy.
In addition to purchasing renewable certificates, Sydney Trains will aim to reduce the amount of electricity it buys from the grid by at least 10% by 2025 by installing solar panels across 27 locations and improving the network’s energy efficiency.
