Mayor’s Message - Friday 28 February 2025

The Ballarat Aquatic and Lifestyle Centre (BALC) is one of the region's premier health and sporting facilities. It provides more than 650,000 visitors annually with year-round swimming and water sport opportunities, a youth gymnastics program, a suite of fitness classes, gym and childcare.

It is also one of the largest users of energy in our region.

That is why it was with great pleasure that I joined Federal Member for Ballarat Catherine King last week as the Australian Government announced a $2.5 million grant to support a major heating system upgrade for the centre.

This transformative $7.7 million project will see the installation of an eco-friendly, state- of-the-art heat pump system to replace the centre’s ageing gas boilers, cutting gas use by 96 per cent and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 1,743 tonnes annually.

This is a major milestone in the city’s transition to clean energy and with our target of zero net emissions on the horizon, projects like this are essential to securing an environmentally sustainable future.

As the owners of the facility, the City of Ballarat will contribute $5.2 million towards the project, reinforcing our commitment to environmental sustainability and smart energy solutions.  

Our significant investment will also deliver long-term financial gains. Utility fees are a major component of the annual running costs at BALC. This project is expected to generate operational savings of $480,000 per year, achieving a return on investment within about 10 years and net savings of $2.1 million by year 15.

Without doubt this project is a gamechanger, laying the foundation for future energy-efficient, cost-saving upgrades and serving as a leading example for other aquatic centres across Australia looking to transition away from gas.

We are grateful to the Australian Government for the financial support of this project as BALC has been an important local facility to the Ballarat community since 1994.  

The planned heat pump system has a life expectancy approximately four times longer than gas boilers and ensures the centre remains at the forefront of sustainable aquatic and fitness services for decades to come.

-  Mayor Cr Tracey Hargreaves