Making household solar batteries more accessible

The NSW Government will launch a new incentive to make household solar batteries more accessible and affordable for the state’s residents.

Member for The Entrance David Mehan said the move would be a great benefit for Central Coast households.

“This is welcome news for struggling families on the Central Coast, helping residents maximise their solar energy use, save on energy bills and boost the reliability of the electricity grid,” he said.

Under the incentive, households and businesses with solar panels on their roofs will be able to buy a cheaper, subsidised battery to store solar energy generated when the sun is shining.

This will help get the most out of their solar, by allowing them to use it around the clock.

It will also reduce their energy bills and boost the reliability of the statewide electricity grid.

The new incentive is part of the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme and includes between $1,600 and $2,400 off the up-front installation cost of a household battery for homes and business with existing solar.

For homes and businesses wanting to install solar, the incentive will be considered in the quote for a new solar and battery system installation.

There will be a $250-$400 incentive for connecting a battery to a Virtual Power Plant which can be claimed a second time, three years on.

Virtual Power Plants group the power produced by rooftop solar and stored in batteries, so it can be released into the grid where and when it’s needed.

Energy from Virtual Power Plants is released into the grid to address frequency and voltage imbalances, local disruptions or disturbances and keep the network stable.

Mehan said by connecting batteries in Virtual Power Plants, households and businesses could collectively share capacity across the energy grid.

The incentive will be available from November 1 and will be accessed through approved suppliers, which will become accredited over the coming months.

Expansion of the scheme follows extensive consultation with companies which specialise in the orchestration of household batteries.

Information on the NSW Government household battery incentive program is available at http://www.energy.nsw.gov.au/batteries