Employment Minister Vicki Ward and Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio visited the North East Link site for the official launch of Yurringa Energy. Photo: LinkedIn.
The Victorian Government has signed a contract with Australia’s first First Nations-owned retail energy provider – Yurringa Energy – to power the state’s biggest road project.
As part of Victoria’s Big Build, three major road projects are being delivered, including the 6.5-km North East Link tunnels from Watsonia to Bulleen. The state’s biggest investment ever in Melbourne’s northeast is expected to take 15,000 trucks off local roads a day and reduce travel times by up to 35 minutes on the city’s busy freeway network.
Upgrades to the Eastern Freeway and M80 Ring Road will include new lanes, smart technology and a seamless connection to the North East Link tunnels, planned to open in 2028.
Yurringa Energy has secured the energy supply contract for the project in partnership with Alinta Energy. Together the State Government claims they will provide 100 per cent renewable power throughout the construction of the North East Link tunnels.
The Victorian Government provided support to the establishment of Yurringa Energy in 2018 as an energy retail business offering supply of energy to commercial and industrial markets.
Employment Minister Vicki Ward said the state was investing in First Nations-owned businesses and backing start-ups like Yurringa Energy to create new and meaningful employment opportunities for Indigenous Victorians – “especially in growing sectors like renewables”.
“This will improve economic opportunities for First Nations people as well as the wider community.”
This effort is part of the state’s Yuma Yirramboi strategy, which hopes to generate greater individual and collective wealth for Aboriginal Victorians by ensuring parity is considered in all government activities. The strategy builds on the foundations laid by the Victorian Aboriginal Economic Strategy 2013-2020 and Tharama Bugheen: Victorian Aboriginal Business Strategy 2017-2021.
Yurringa Energy founder and managing director Daniel Briggs said the State Government’s “support and willingness to walk with us with a shared vision to interrupt the cycle of economic exclusion for Indigenous people has been significant to our success”.
Mr Briggs is a proud Yorta Yorta Wemba Wemba man from the Goulburn Murray Region. He has extensive experience in the legal industry as well as being a non-executive board member at Goulburn Valley Water and GOTAFE.
At the beginning of August his company launched in Victoria, with its initial focus being on the commercial industrial sector and plans to expand into the domestic market. Yurringa Energy prioritises hiring Indigenous employees and contractors, but also provides training and development opportunities to support their career growth.
“Yurringa will transform the energy market while staying true to the Indigenous environmental principles of country,” said Mr Briggs. “As Australia’s first Indigenous energy retailer we are ready to partner with the top end of town.
“We are not taking on the big guys; we want to walk together to create economic benefits to the Indigenous community while delivering cost effective and sustainable energy solutions.”
