Bundaberg Horticulture Farm
Energy Savings: 17% | Cost Savings: $5,000 | Capital Cost: $35,000 | CO2 Savings: 13.6 | Project Status: proposed
Industry:
Horticulture
Location:
Wide Bay Burnett
Pump Type:
Turbine
Irrigation Type:
Drip, Micro irrigation
Technology:
Solar Power and Renewables, Tariffs
The farm, near Bundaberg, produces avocados and is irrigated year-round depending on rainfall. Water is supplied from underground aquifers.
It is a large farm consuming just over 100,000kWh per year at a cost of $30,000 at the three meters assessed. They harvest about 800 tonnes per year from 60ha. The farm is starting to replace older avocado orchards with macadamias which changes the power and water consumption.
The infrastructure contributing to the energy consumption onsite consists of:
- A main 37kW turbine irrigation pump with VSD which irrigates most of the farm.
- Several small fertigation pumps, on the same NMI as the main pump.
- A smaller irrigation turbine pump used to irrigate a smaller section of the farm.
- A 40hp turbine pump used to irrigate a smaller section of the farm.
A recent energy audit showed how improving the current systems can lead to energy and cost savings. The energy audit recommended the following changes to improve efficiency and reduce costs:
- Tariff analysis, which found savings of $400 by changing the irrigation Time of Use tariff 66 on the largest pump by the small business flat-rate tariff 20.
- Review of existing pumps and efficiencies, which were found operating at an efficient point.
- Installation of a 20kW ground-mounted solar system at the site of the large pump.
Table 1. Energy and cost savings from audit recommendations
| Recommendation | Annual Energy Savings (kWh) | Annual Cost Savings ($) | Emission Savings (tCO2-e) | Capital Cost ($) | Payback Period (years) |
| 20kW solar system | 17,000 | 5,000 | 13.6 | 35,000 | 7.2 |
Following the audit report recommendations, the grower did not proceed with the recommendation due to other business pressures.
By installing the recommendations in the audit, the business could reduce energy consumption and costs by 17%, with carbon emission savings of 13.6 tCO2-e per year.
Table 2. Pre and post audit energy, costs and energy productivity savings
| Metric | Pre-Audit | Post-Audit | Reduction (%) |
| Energy Consumption (kWh) | 100,000 | 83,000 | 17 |
| Cost ($) | 30,000 | 25,000 | 17 |
| Energy Productivity (kWh/tonne) | 125 | 104 | 17 |
An energy audit is a good investment
An energy audit is a great first step in moving a business towards a more efficient future by reducing energy use, costs and carbon emissions onsite.
The Energy Savers Plus Extension Program was delivered by the Queensland Farmers Federation with support and funding from the Queensland Department of Energy and Public Works.
