Congratulations to the winners of the 2017 Clean Energy Council Awards.

The Clean Energy Council has awarded the Oustanding Contribution to Industry Award to Chloe Munro, a member of the panel reviewing Australia's energy security led by the Chief Scientist Dr Alan Finkel. Chloe was formely the head of the Clean Energy Regulator.

Chloe has made a powerful contribution to the renewable energy sector. Her leadership helped build a first-class regulatory body and supported the growing maturity of the industry.

This award was shared with two projects.

Horizon Power designed a new way of billing for electricity similar to mobile phone plans to increase understanding and engagement from customers. Users can track their energy use with an app that helps them to save money by staying under a set energy allowance each hour.

AusNet Services worked with Greensync and PowerTec to establish a Community Mini Grid in a street in Mooroolbark, Victoria. Homes in the project could share energy between themselves and the project investigated the operation of a stand-alone mini grid within the broader energy network using 100 per cent renewable energy, which also led to substantial customer savings.

The Climate Council won the Business Community Engagement award for developing a strategy to combat the misinformation surrounding the role of renewable energy in the September 2016 state-wide blackout in South Australia. It used written and video communication, social media, journalist backgrounding and stakeholder briefings to help combat public misinformation.

Innovation Award finalists

Windlab was able to negotiate finance with NAB for the project over 19 years – an unprecedented result for the market at the time. Key to the deal was an offer from John Laing to acquire more than 72 per cent of the project at financial close. John Laing was both a partner in the project and a customer, and its involvement was important to securing financial backing from NAB.

Business Community Engagement Award finalists

Western Power investigated the use of stand-alone power systems in regional Western Australia as an alternative to replacing hundreds of kilometres of overhead powerlines in areas with very few customers. Community and stakeholder engagement was an important part of the 12-month pilot's study, and the project attracted high satisfaction ratings from those involved.

Horizon Power was a finalist for both the Innovation Award and the Business Community Engagement Award for its new “Power Plans”. The business essentially engaged the public as research partners, using an app to track their behaviour and engagement with the program. It also made use of a Facebook group and Facebook polls, interviews, group forums, in-depth surveys, email, SMS, an educational video and an account manager who could be contacted at any time.