General News
21 November, 2025
Thousands descend on town as Energy Breakthrough returns for its 33rd year
The future of innovation and sustainability is on display at this year’s Energy Breakthrough (EB), with thousands of students showcasing impressive projects built for beyond the classroom.
While this year’s five day long event won’t be under the same scorching temperatures as last year, the heat is already on for the many bright young minds who have spent months putting their STEM skills to work.
This time, almost 20,000 students, parents and teachers are expected to attend the nation’s one-of-a-kind educational event.
Country Education Partnership education team leader Nigel Preston was thrilled to see far away schools converge onto Princes Park again, joining Victorian schools to compete head to head.
“We have Holy Cross College from New South Wales, and one from South Australia, Norwood International Highschool,” he said.
“But Maryborough, Ballarat, Bendigo, are really strong. Schools from the Mornington Peninsula are also really strong.”
By his observations, he’s pleased by attendance and participation with many areas back to pre-COVID numbers, and has plans to get other areas revived.
“From a participation point of view, the Human Powered Vehicles (HPVs) and electric vehicles are approaching the numbers we were before COVID. That’s exciting, we really are regrowing the numbers,” Mr Preston said.
“It’s in the pushcarts where we need to really start to regrow. That’s something we are focusing on from now to next year.”
Mr Preston has been excited to see Honda back the engineering feats presented by Australian school kids.
“Obviously, we are now supported by Honda, which is really exciting. It’s great to have a huge global brand behind us. To think that they are backing an event here in Maryborough Victoria is a pretty exciting thing, a great encouragement for the students and encouragement for us and we are on the right track,” he said.
“They are really invested in the next generation and that’s what the program is all about.
“Locally, it’s exciting to see Highview are entering their first pedal electric, in the entire time they have been involved, they have never had a pedal electric.”
But in the lead up to their first electric attempt at the track, thousands of visiting schools will undergo the rigorous scrutineering and long trials of their own HPVs.
Traveling two hours to Maryborough, Niddrie Primary School are one of the very few metro schools that take part in the event.
Spectators can expect to see an incoming glow of fluorescent yellow and blue on the track this year, with students designing thunder and lighting themed HPVs, matching the colours of their school uniform.
The student’s t-shirts were even designed by members of their cohort.
Niddire Primary School student Evie Marcon said EB was once of the highest anticipated events for her and her peers.
“It’s our 25th anniversary, we started here as a school in 2000. I recommend giving EB a try, it’s really fun, it’s definitely my favourite primary school experience,” she said.
When the student’s hard work pays off at the end of this year’s EB, they are looking forward to being rewarded by their teachers, as student Ashley Spring-Brown was promised.
“If both HPVs place top 20, we can have Zooper Doopers, if we come top ten, we get top shelf ice creams like Magnums, and if we come first, they will buy us an ice cream truck,” she said.
To facilitate this year’s EB event, numerous roads surrounding Lake Victoria are closed until this Sunday, with the exception of Christian Street (between Burns and Napier Street), Napier Street and Lake Road from Christian Street which reopen on November 29.
Other road closures include:
• Park Road (between Holyrood Street and Gladstone Street)
• Park Road (between Holyrood Street and Nightingale Street)
• Holyrood Street (between Park Road and Burns Street)
• Burns Street (between Christian Street and Lake Road)
• Burns Street (between Lake Road and Holyrood Street)
EB ends on Sunday, November 23 2025.
