ANDREW Barr says the ACT Government is seeking innovative proposals for the management of Canberra’s streetlight network to deliver improved cost and energy efficiencies.

“This model for maintaining the publicly-owned streetlight network was developed in consultation with industry during the Request for Expressions of Interest process in November 2015,” Andrew said.

“I would like to acknowledge this important collaboration with our industry stakeholders.

“The savings from more energy efficient lights and a more affordable maintenance contract will mean we can invest more in other services. Upgrades will ensure the lights are not only more efficient, but less likely to experience problems that could inconvenience Canberrans.

“We are looking for proposal that only saves energy and money, but also uses our network of lights for ‘smart city’ applications, such as our public wi-fi network.

“The ACT Government currently owns and manages one of the nation’s largest portfolios of 79,000 lights on streets, footpaths, arterial roads and in various public parks and open spaces around Canberra.

“The chosen provider will be responsible for the complete management of the streetlights, including operations and maintenance (including electricity supply), the implementation of an energy efficiency upgrade that delivers guaranteed energy savings to the Territory, and the establishment of a flexible ‘smart city backbone’.

“This ‘backbone’ will support services such as smart parking, traffic management and environmental monitoring, which can help make our city more liveable, productive and sustainable.”

The Government’s Request for Proposal (RFP): No.28097 is now open until 6 October 2016. For further details, visit the Tenders ACT website tenders.act.gov.au.