Millions of Australians are turning to solar to alleviate rising energy bills, according to the latest Clean Energy Council’s bi-annual Rooftop Solar and Storage Report.
The report reveals rooftop solar installations are on track to pass a total of 25GW installed capacity in Australia by the end of 2024. By comparison, black and brown coal combined for 21.3GW of total installed capacity in the financial year to 2023-24.
Despite stronger winter conditions, rooftop solar grew its contribution to Australia’s total energy generation mix to 11.3% during the first half of 2024. New South Wales also became the second state to pass one million total rooftop PV installations, after Queensland did so in 2023.
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“Australian consumers are continuing to lead the world in adopting rooftop solar,” Clean Energy Council co-chief policy and impact officer Con Hristodoulidis said.
“It’s become a staple investment for homeowners and small businesses. With typical payback periods of around three to four years, rooftop solar is now a recognised and simple step to take pressure off the family budget.”
The report, developed with data provided by solar consultancy SunWiz, also found promising signs for the uptake of home batteries with nearly 30,000 battery units sold in the first half of 2024.
Despite such strong growth, home battery uptake remains far behind the levels needed under the Australian Energy Market Operator’s 2024 Integrated System Plan to efficiently achieve Australia’s 82% renewable energy target in 2030.
“Over 3.7 million homes and small businesses now have solar panels on their roofs, helping them reduce their energy bills in the daytime,” Hristodoulidis said.
“Home batteries are now the missing piece of the puzzle, to maximise those solar savings for times when the sun isn’t shining and smash household energy bills.”
As the Clean Energy Council’s, ‘It’s Time to Back Batteries’ campaign has shown, the implementation of a national incentive scheme could trigger an additional 410,000 installations of batteries in homes and small businesses by 2050.
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Households could expect annual bill savings of between $900 and $1,000 per year with non-orchestrated batteries and between $1,150 and 1,500 per year with orchestrated batteries trading energy with the grid. Even households without solar or batteries could see lower energy bills as more home batteries drive benefits to the overall energy system.
“Incentives for home batteries are needed now to maximise Australia’s world-leading rooftop solar capacity,” Hristodoulidis said.
“It is a win-win outcome. In a midst of a slower economy, solar PV and home batteries can play a key role is lifting economic activity by support for thousands of Australian installers and businesses working in the sector, as well as lowering energy bills for all Australians.”
