Tamworth Regional Council has been on the path for energy savings since 2017, and the latest report shows it is on the right track despite COVID-19 setbacks.
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With past projects already lightening the electrical load, others are in the works and are also expected to lead the way to future savings.
Over the course of three years, there has been a steady decline in the amount of electricity used by council.
Energy consumption was down to 17,085,166 kWh in the 2018/19 financial year, down from 18,221,832 kWh the year before.
In 2017/18, the consumption rate was 648,740kWh higher again.
Council attributes these reductions as a result of upgrading LED street lights - which saves approximately $240,000 each year - and the "drought reducing energy use for water infrastructure."
Speaking in dollar terms, council paid $21,784 less on this year's electricity bill compared to last year's whopper of $4,029,891.
They even paid $304,517 more for electricity that year than in the 2017/18 period, thanks to "significant energy rate increases".
Green House Gas Emissions are also trending the right way, with the figures showing a steady reduction in the amount released every year.
In 2017/28 there were 13,690 tones of Green House Gasses released.
In 2018/19 there were 12,486 tones.
And in 2018/19, only 11,895 tones were sent out into the atmosphere.
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A consistent decline of around 1000 tonnes per year.
To date, approximately 120 kilowatts of solar panels have been installed at council sites.
In the last 12 months alone, the current solar systems generated 200 MWh, which in plain terms saved council roughly $35,000.
However further solar installations across 11 sites are set to improve efficiency even more.
The additional 540 kW of solar is expected to save council $116,000 every year.
But despite the bulk of this work being already completed, it hasn't all been smooth sailing.
Work on some of these sites have been impacted by the pandemic, meaning a fair amount of rescheduling has had to take place.
At the Ordinary Council Meeting in June 2019, Akcome Power was chosen to supply and install solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on these council-owned facilities.
COVID-19 restrictions delayed progress, as the majority of resources are being sourced from China.
Some contractors from Brisbane are also now unavailable to complete some of the work under the proposed schedule, meaning they will be commissioned in the coming weeks.
The total cost for these new works is $541,000 mark.
