Mr Behrendorff is General Manager of the Bushlight renewable energy project at the Northern Territory’s Centre for Appropriate Technology (CAT), which brings reliable and affordable energy services to remote indigenous communities.

Granting him the award, Engineers Australia said, “Grant has shown exemplary program management, human resource development and vision in leading ‘Bushlight’ to national pre-eminence in the small-scale renewable energy industry.”

On winning the award, Mr Behrendorff said it was a very unexpected, but of course pleasant, surprise.

Mr Behrendorff began his career as an apprentice electrician in Northern Queensland and received his Bachelor of Technology (Electrical and Electronic Engineering) from the University of Southern Queensland in 1996. During the mid 1990s he worked for the Far North Queensland Electricity Board (FNQEB), working in and supporting power stations in approximately 30 remote Indigenous communities across western and northern Queensland.

“During this time I became interested in the role that renewable energy sources could play in offsetting generation from fossil fuel sources. In particular, how renewable energy and more traditional sources of energy could be integrated – from a technical viewpoint – to complement each other,” he explains.

In 1995 Mr Behrendorff had the opportunity to concentrate his efforts in the renewable energy field when the FNQEB started a business unit dedicated to the design and installation of remote area power supply (RAPS) systems. From 1995 to 2000 the unit grew from a one-man operation – Mr Behrendorff – to a team of ten people designing, manufacturing, installing and supporting RAPS systems.

Mr Behrendorff says a highlight of this period was his role as project manager for the development of a unique hybrid renewable energy power supply system designed specifically for use on cattle properties in western Queensland. In 2001 this project won a Queensland Division Engineering Excellence Award.

In 2002 Mr Behrendorff moved to the Northern Territory to accept the position as General Manger of the Bushlight renewable energy project at CAT. Again, Mr Behrendorff was one of the project’s first employees, and took on a business development and management role.

Over the last five and a half years, Bushlight has worked with over 100 remote Indigenous communities (generally with populations of less than 100 people) to design, install and maintain high quality renewable energy systems that provide reliable 24-hour power.

“These systems have drastically reduced the cost of energy within the communities, resulting in improved living conditions and enabling residents to pursue a greater range of livelihood opportunities,” says Mr Behrendorff.

The Bushlight team has since developed other renewable energy projects in which Mr Behrendorff has been played an active role. These include a $3 million Solar Technology Demonstration Facility currently under construction at the Desert Knowledge precinct in Alice Springs and the Alice Springs Solar Cities project, which was successful in securing $12.3 million to participate in the Australian Government’s Solar Cities program. Mr Behrendorff has been Chairman of the Alice Springs Solar Cities project consortium since it’s inception in 2006.

Mr Behrendorff is currently developing the Bushlight team’s work overseas, developing a project to adapt the Bushlight Community Energy Planning Model for use in the rural electrification sector. He will work with several non-government organisations in India on a three year project to deliver energy services to remote villages using processes and technology developed by the Bushlight team.

Of course, Mr Behrendorff gives credit where credit is due and is proud of the work the Bushlight project team has done.

“As everything I’ve achieved over the last few years has been as a result of a huge effort by the whole Bushlight team, I dedicated the award to my dedicated and hard working colleagues at CAT,” he says.

He makes the point that in the past, the renewable energy industry – particularly the small to medium size end of the market – has been considered the domain of the handyman and the backyard mechanic.

“I’m very pleased to have been able to demonstrate and draw attention to the role of mainstream engineering in bringing about high quality and reliability outcomes in this market segment,” he says.

Soon to relinquish his role as the Bushlight project’s General Manager at CAT to work on new Bushlight projects in Cairns, Mr Behrendorff remains committed to his work in the renewable energy, engineering and project management roles. He says the awards he and the Bushlight team have won have been helpful in increasing the profile of the renewable energy industry within the engineering profession, and in particular, in highlighting the opportunities for engineering professionals within this field.

“I see working at the interface between the community and the engineering teams developing solutions to the problems that we, as a society, face as an important and fascinating role, which requires deliberate attention and focus,” he says.

“My short to medium ambition is to continue to find, develop and implement projects and business opportunities that have a positive effect on people and the environment.”