What if the power in our homes and businesses could do more than keep the lights on—strengthening communities, easing grid strain, and building shared regional benefits?

That was the question at the heart of the Regional Energy Transition Collaborative (RETC), a project delivered by RDA Ipswich and West Moreton (IWM) and funded by Advance Queensland. While 'energy sharing' may sound technical, it simply means individuals and groups sharing excess locally produced electricity, such as solar power, with nearby people rather than letting it go to waste. The idea is simple and powerful: people work together, use local resources more effectively, and build a stronger community.

Over 12 months, the RETC project explored whether energy sharing could become a practical reality across the IWM region. The project examined three possible models — small, medium and large — ranging from households sharing locally generated power through to arrangements involving small businesses, commercial operators and institutions. Each aimed to keep energy and its value within the community.

From the outset, the project brought together a range of expertise and partnerships. CS Energy, an Australian-based electricity generating company fully owned by the Queensland Government, gave insights into the potential of wide-scale energy sharing. This entails distributing energy to larger groups, such as commercial operators. The Queensland Department of State Development offered regional guidance, and energy consultant, Constructive Energy, led the technical analysis. They assessed how the technology and facilities needed for energy sharing could work in practice. At the same time, RDA IWM focused on the community side of the project including listening, engaging, and understanding what would make local people feel confident enough to take part.

One of the clearest lessons was that regional innovation depends on trust. The project needed access to energy usage data from households, businesses, and organisations to test whether the models could work in practice. Yet in current environment’s, asking for that information can feel intensely personal. For many, it raised concerns around privacy, trust, and vulnerability.

What made the difference was RDA IWM’s strong standing in the region. Longstanding relationships unlocked doors that might otherwise have stayed closed. Those trusted connections secured the information needed for analysis. They similarly reinforced an important truth: place-based projects are built on relationships long before support for new ideas is needed.

The project also showed that significant change takes time. Renewable energy is a complicated and frequently crowded space, defined by technical language, policy layers and community scepticism. RETC found that building understanding was not as simple as sharing information online. What worked best was direct and personal conversation, with the aim of helping people see that the project was not about promoting a product but about exploring a practical opportunity for the region's benefit.

By the end of the 12 months, RETC had demonstrated that regional energy sharing can increase local economic benefits, support community resilience, and relieve grid pressure. The research confirmed that, with strong partnerships and local involvement, these outcomes are realistic and replicable.

At its core, this project is about local empowerment. It is about communities having more say, more opportunity, and more benefit from local resources. For RDA IWM, the vision stays clear to keep energy local and ensure the future serves the people.