Australia is the world’s leader in rooftop solar. With more than 3.6 million households having already installed solar on their roof, Australians across the nation are taking back control of their power bills and saving an average of $1,500 a year.
By 2030, clean energy like wind and solar will be able to meet almost all of our electricity needs, with energy storage–like batteries–making clean energy available around the clock. By building on the momentum we’ve already created, we can ensure Australia’s economy is powered by the sun and wind, our communities and kids are set up for success, and we are on track to end climate pollution and secure a safer future for all Australians.
Where is Australia up to with solar generation?
The transformation of Australia’s electricity system is well underway, with over 40% of the electricity in our main grid already coming from clean energy, like the sun and wind. Australia’s ageing and unreliable coal-fired power stations are closing down and, thanks in large part to initiatives led by state and territory governments, Australia has doubled the share of renewable energy in our main grid in fewer than six years.
Even better, more than 100,000 households have coupled their solar system with a battery. This allows families to store and use more of the clean electricity they produce, cutting energy bills and climate pollution at the same time. Meanwhile, the government has invested in hundreds of community batteries (which store and share power between people in a local area). This helps communities share in the benefits of local rooftop solar power – even people without panels like renters and people living in apartments – because cheap solar that is made, stored and used locally cuts power prices.
What are the states up to?
Queensland lives up to its reputation as the ‘sunshine state’, with more than half of Queensland’s households already putting solar on their roofs. This has been supported by the $62 billion State Energy and Jobs Plan designed to create 100,000 jobs by 2040.
There are subsidy schemes available in different states and territories and Local Government Areas to help with the upfront cost of solar and battery installation. Find out if you qualify for support here.
Select states and territories have also made it easy to sell excess electricity generated by small-scale solar back to the energy retailers. Find out more about this program here.
Victoria is currently running pilot programs to support renters and apartment owners to access solar. Find out what the program offers here.
What’s next for solar in Australia?
Aussies have embraced rooftop solar like nowhere else on the planet, but we have a long way to go to reach our enormous potential and so much to gain by doing so: cheaper bills, less climate pollution and a more flexible, resilient grid.
That’s why it’s time for a national push to double the number of solar systems on Australian rooftops and deliver more community and household energy storage by the end of the decade.
This means putting rooftop solar on millions more Aussie homes, businesses and public buildings, and investing in ways to share the benefits of solar among more people, such as thousands more community batteries and solar gardens helping cementing Australia’s place as the world’s solar champions.
Doubling solar by the end of the decade will cut bills for Aussie families, and add renewable energy to the grid, making electricity more secure, reliable and affordable for everyone. It will also create jobs in every suburb, cut climate pollution across Australia, and reduce pressure on large-scale transmission by generating energy in the same place as it is used.
This is the bright future that rooftop solar and storage offers, which we can achieve by seizing the sun and supercharging rooftop solar and storage today.
So, let’s get on with it!
