The City of Sydney Basketball Association has a new 39.78kW solar and 25.6kWh battery system at their Alexandria stadium. An interest-free loan – sourced entirely from community donations – financed the project and was provided by national climate action charity, Citizens Own Renewable Energy Network Australia (CORENA).

The new solar and battery system is expected to avoid an estimated 55,305kWh of grid electricity/year, thereby avoiding 37.6 tonnes of carbon emissions/year. It’s expected that solar will reduce the non-profit organisation’s electricity bills by approximately $9,680 per year – and once their CORENA loan is repaid, the organisation can divert these energy bill savings towards their core purpose of supporting and promoting sport within the community.

CEO of City of Sydney Basketball Association, Ben Madgen, states “At the City of Sydney Basketball Association, we’re passionate about creating a sustainable future for our community. Partnering with CORENA Fund to add solar power to the Alexandria Basketball Stadium is a game-changer, reducing our environmental impact while ensuring a brighter, greener future for the athletes, families and community we serve.”

CORENA operates Australia’s longest running donor-driven revolving fund for practical climate action. Interest-free loans are available to not-for-profit, community and social-enterprise organisations for projects that reduce their carbon emissions. Citizens across Australia make tax-deductible donationsto collectively crowd-fund these community climate projects. These donations are then returned to CORENA’s revolving fund in the form of loan repayments, and these funds, plus new donations, are then used again to fund future projects.

CORENA offers interest-free loans to fund the following project types:

• Solar installations
• Energy efficiency upgrades (including LED lighting, building insulation etc)
• Replacing gas appliances (including water/space heating, cooking) with energy efficient electric alternatives.
• Purchasing electric vehicles
• Any combination of the above – or talk to us about any other project type that will reduce emissions.

To date, CORENA has funded over $1.58 million for 56 completed climate action projects. These projects have avoided using over 6,986MWh of grid electricity which equates to reducing carbon emissions by approximately 4,447 tonnes.

Other community organisations are encouraged to apply for a CORENA interest-free loan. CORENA provides free technical advice and assistance and hosts monthly online Q&A sessions providing information for community organisations who want to learn more about CORENA loans.

About City of Sydney Basketball Association

The City of Sydney Basketball Association (CSBA) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to nurturing basketball from its grassroots to high-performance levels within the community.

Situated in Alexandria, CSBA caters to the City of Sydney, Randwick, Waverly, and Woollahra Council areas. Since the mid-1980s, the Alexandria Basketball Stadium has stood as the heart of Sydney’s basketball scene for more than five decades, notably hosting the Sydney Supersonics, the city’s inaugural professional basketball team.

CSBA’s focus is on fostering diversity and inclusivity in basketball-related activities. As an inclusive centre, they boast a diverse participant base, including Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander, Mongolian, LGBTQI, and various other communities. Their offerings span various grassroots initiatives like Learn to Play programs and local competitions, operating throughout the week.

The Sydney Comets serve as CSBA’s elite representative teams, representing the association across Metropolitan, State, and National levels in affiliation with Basketball NSW and Basketball Australia.