Bellarine Hydroponics plants energy efficiency to boost growth

August 2021

Bellarine TechBio Pty Ltd – trading as Bellarine Hydroponics – is a leading producer of hydroponic horticultural crops located in the Bellarine region of Victoria. The business has been running commercial greenhouse operations for over 17 years, producing premium quality cherry truss tomatoes. Full control over the greenhouses’ environment and irrigation enables Bellarine Hydroponics to produce every week of the year, reaching the highest possible yields for cherry truss tomato production. The temperature controlled growing conditions of greenhouses means that energy is Bellarine Hydroponics’ single highest expense after staff costs.

Realising that their energy expenses weren’t set in stone, the company leveraged a free energy audit provided by the Victorian Government to identify energy savings opportunities. This audit identified opportunities that included introducing an automated climate control system, a 22kW solar PV system, thermal screens, and a heat buffer tank.

Bellarine Hydroponics started with the thermal screens upgrade as they offered the largest savings opportunity: a $24,000 per annum reduction in the gas bill. This is achieved by reducing the amount of heat that escapes the greenhouses, which minimises the need for climate control. Importantly, beyond these energy bills savings, the improved growing conditions enabled by the energy upgrades mean that Bellarine Hydroponics is expecting production gains of up to ten per cent, which will result in more than $70,000 in additional annual revenue.

The business has also leveraged the Victorian Energy Upgrades (VEU) program to help fund some of the energy upgrades, which are expected to save around 85 per cent of the capital costs.

Find this case study on page 16 of Navigating a dynamic energy landscape: a briefing for farms.