The City of Sydney has proposed new rules to ban gas appliances in all new residential and large commercial buildings, as well as hotels.

The ban is expected to commence on 1 January 2026, when new residential developments will need to ensure their indoor appliances (cooking and heating) are electric.

Outdoor appliances (heaters) will be added to the electrification rules for new residential developments from 1 January 2027. From that same date, new large commercial buildings will also be required to follow the electrification rules. 

Larger commercial developments include new hotels with more than 100 rooms and commercial buildings with more than 1000 square metres of floor space.

The new rules won’t apply to industrial uses or existing buildings.

Where a mixed-use development is affected by the planning controls, any food and beverage premises within the development can still use gas, provided there is capacity for electrification in the future.

Changing attitudes to planning

A contentious topic in New South Wales, this move comes after premier Chris Minns ruled out a state-wide ban on new gas connections in 2023.

However, NSW councils are using their planning powers and regulations to ban new gas connections. 

Councils’ Development Control Plans (DCPs) give them legislative authority to influence new development in their zoned areas.

Hornsby Shire, Lane Cove, City of Newcastle, Waverley, City of Parramatta and City of Canada Bay councils have all banned gas appliances in new homes and seven other NSW councils are set to follow suit.

With gas prices projected to continue increasing due to network charges, the City of Sydney councillors claimed the change will save newly electrified households around $626 a year in energy bills.

A safer option

Swapping to electric induction appliances can provide a more sustainable, efficient and safer alternative to gas.

Gas cooktops and ranges can produce harmful nitrogen oxides as byproducts of combustion that can cause respiratory illnesses. A 2022 peer-reviewed study from the US suggested that 12.7 percent of childhood asthma cases are attributable to gas stove emissions.

Lord mayor of Sydney Clover Moore AO welcomed the new rules for indoor electric appliances, which will come into effect in just over six months.

“Relying on fossil fuel gas is bad for the planet, bad for our finances and bad for our health,” Moorer said. “Ensuring all-electric buildings into the future is simply a logical next step to take.”

“These changes will create healthier and more energy-efficient buildings which will meet future energy standards and avoid expensive retrofitting.”

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