Your Guide To Solar Power & Battery Storage Rebates In Victoria 2024

Solar power is one of the most popular and cost-effective ways to reduce your energy bills and carbon footprint. The Victorian Government is providing support to Victorians to take control of their energy bills, tackle climate change and build a cleaner renewable future. Through the Solar Homes Program, eligible homeowners can get generous solar power rebates and battery interest-free loans.

Whether you are a new or existing solar customer, you can take advantage of this amazing opportunity to save money and the environment. 

Solar Panel Rebate Victoria

The Victorian government is offering a rebate of up to $1,400 for installing solar panels on your home. The number of rebates each month varies and are released every second Wednesday of the month.

If you have previously received a rebate but have moved to a new house, you can still apply. Similarly, if your solar system is over 10 years old, you can apply to replace or upgrade your existing system. 

To further reduce installation costs, householders can apply for an interest-free loan, for an amount equivalent to their rebate amount. The loan is required to be repaid over four years or can be repaid sooner in one lump sum. This can cover up to 50% of the cost of a solar system. As quality solar systems cost more than $3000, all  1KOMMA5° Melbourne customers will get the full rebate of $1400 if they qualify*.

You can also apply for the solar rebate and interest-free loan while your house is being built. You could save on installation costs and start saving with solar as soon as you move in.

The best thing about this solar rebate from Solar Victoria is that more households will now be able to invest in a top-quality solar system, avoiding the troubles that are now synonymous with the cheaper end of the solar market. Over 1 in 5 solar systems are defected by the Clean Energy Council, more on that here: Cheap Solar, Don’t Do It!

Eligibility

Victorian households are eligible to receive a rebate for installing a solar PV system if they meet the following criteria:

• you are the owner-occupier of an existing property or the owner of a home under construction where the system is to be installed

• the combined household taxable income of all owners is less than $210,000 per year

• the property is valued at under $3 million, or a home under construction that will be valued at under $3 million at the time of completion

• the property address has not previously received a solar panel (PV) rebate under the Solar Homes Program

• the property has not had a solar panel (PV) system installed in the last ten years*

*If you are participating in the Premium Feed-in Tariff scheme, you should consider whether you will be better off if you replace your existing system before the scheme ends in November 2024.

When you’re eligible for the rebate scheme, we will upload your quote with Solar Victoria and an email will be sent to you with your quote number which is required for you to start your rebate application. You will need to provide documents such as proof of income and proof of ownership such as Council Rates Notice or  Certificate of Title.

Once your eligibility is confirmed, we will claim the rebate on your behalf and deduct the rebate amount from the total cost of your system.

Solar Battery Storage Interest Free Loan Victoria

The battery storage interest-free loan is a total game-changer for battery storage in Victoria. Households can now apply for up to $8800 Battery Storage Interest-Free Loan through Solar Victoria when ordering a Tesla Powerwall or an Enphase IQ Battery from 1KOMMA5° Melbourne.

With repayments over a four-year period, this great interest-free loan that has replaced the battery rebate will make battery storage a more affordable option for thousands of households looking to maximise the benefit of their solar power system and their energy independence.

There are 4,500 interest free loans of up to $8,800 available in 2023-2024 but as of January 2, 2024, only 2,800 loans are left. More information on the battery rebate and eligibility are available here: Victorian Battery Storage Rebate

Eligible households can still apply for the solar battery interest-free loan after receiving the solar panel rebates. Note, however, that the solar battery loan is not available for homes still under construction. 

The Federal Government’s Solar Incentive

Federal government incentives are available to qualifying residential and commercial premises in Australia that install solar panels and other renewable energy systems.

These rebates can mean significant reductions in the cost of solar systems and have been designed to encourage Australia’s use of renewable energy.

The rebate program is part of Australia’s Renewable Energy Target and so when you install a Solar System a number of Renewable Energy Certificates are created. These Certificates (referred to as STCs – or Small-Scale Technology Certificates) are then purchased on an open market, often by Energy Companies as part of their Renewable Energy commitments. The price is capped at $40 per certificate and is locked in when you place an order for immediate installation.

The value of these Certificates is normally deducted from the price of your system directly reducing the purchase price.

Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs)

STCs are created when a Renewable Energy System such as a Solar PV system is installed.

The number of STCs depends on the size of the system and therefore the amount of energy generated. One STC is created for every megawatt-hour of production capacity of the system. This is further multiplied by the number of years the system is likely to generate energy. For solar systems, this was 15 years (the life of the solar panels themselves is considerably more than that).

There are currently great rebates available on all of our solar systems. The larger your system the greater the rebate.

* Reduction figures are rounded to the nearest $50 and are based on an STC price of $38 for a solar system installed in 2022. Please check with our team for the current STC price as it often changes.

The STC scheme is a great opportunity for homeowners to reduce their upfront solar investment. However, the scheme is not permanent, and the number of STCs that a system can create will gradually decrease over time, until the scheme ends in 2030.

This means that the sooner you install a small-scale renewable energy system, the more STCs you can create, and the more money you can save. In fact, the Clean Energy Regulator has recently updated its STC forecast for 2020-2024, and it shows that the STC creation rate will drop by 7% in 2024, and by another 7% in 2025.

The Real Savings Start After The System Is Installed

The sooner you get your solar power system installed, the sooner it starts saving you money. Your heavily-discounted investment will give you returns whenever the sun is out. The average-sized 6.6kW system can bring your power bills down by up to around $2000 a year, and a larger system will help you achieve even greater savings.

If your system generates more energy than your household uses during the daytime, sending the power back into the grid for someone else to use will also earn you a small feed-in tariff as a credit on your bill, but it’s not where the main benefit of solar lies.

This is why so many households are adding battery storage to further reduce their power bills and maximise their energy independence… if electricity prices rise, it doesn’t matter so much if you are running on solar power for most of the day and into the evening.

Still unsure about solar batteries? Our comprehensive guide simplifies everything you need to know and helps you decide if one is right for you.

Ready to make the switch to solar? Contact us today or request your free personalised quote below and one of our solar experts will be in touch with you to find an energy efficient solution to your needs and walk you through any questions you have on the solar and battery rebates and interest-free loans.