Alfredton Child Care Centre is the first in town to install panels, according to landlord Gavin Cerini, who has had a long interest in renewable energy. 

Mr Cerini said he made the decision because it would save on energy costs, and the $29,000 system would pay for itself in “eight or nine years”. 

“It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while, we’ve already got them at home so it made sense to get some up over here,” he said. 

Mr Cerini recommended other landlords and business owners invest in solar because it would save them money, but he was disappointed in the state government’s reduction of the feed-in tariff, which pays people for the energy they put back into the grid. 

“It’s changed the way we set up solar systems, looking for stable returns instead of a peak at certain times of the day.” 

Mr Cerini said the panels would cover about half of the centre’s electricity use, and would take up a bigger share when the heating system was revamped. 

Centre manager Kate Wilson said it seemed like more and more centres were taking the plunge and going solar.