South Australia has some of the highest power bills in the world. For example, the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) reported an average price of 37.68 cents per kWh for 2019/2020. The good news is that homeowners in South Australia can avoid these high energy prices by adopting solar power. 

However, installing a solar PV system to reduce energy costs does not come cheap, and the high investment costs turn many people away. Knowing this, the South Australian and the federal governments have put forth several rebates and incentives to support homeowners and businesses that choose to go solar in 2022. 

Below we’ve detailed the SA solar incentives, rebates, and tariffs available in 2022. The incentives and rebates cushion you from the initial high investment costs of solar PV systems. 

At the end of this article, you’ll know that as a South Australian, you would not have to go it alone. In this post, you’ll learn everything about the SA solar incentives and rebates in 2022, how they work, and whether you qualify. 

The must-know solar incentives and rebates in SA are: 

• Home battery scheme
• Adelaide’s sustainability incentives scheme
• Free technical assessment scheme
• Feed-in tariffs
• Small-scale technology certificates

Let’s get started!

1. Home battery rebate scheme

Under the Home Battery Scheme, South Australians can get up to $2,000 in subsidies for installing a solar battery system. Typical households can get $150 per kWh of battery capacity, while energy concession holders qualify for a higher subsidy of $250 per kWh.

More and more people planning to go solar are looking to include a battery system in their solar power system. Also, many already installed solar systems are looking to add solar batteries to their existing ones.

Battery systems are increasingly becoming popular because they provide energy independence. Battery systems store electricity generated by solar panels for use during the evenings when electricity is at peak demand. This reduces the power you’ll draw from the grid. Apart from reducing electricity bills even more, it also reduces the state’s energy demand. There is also the benefit of connecting the home battery system so that it provides power during a blackout. 

However, battery storage can be expensive. So, despite wanting home battery systems, most solar customers leave them out of their PV systems. For this reason, the City of Adelaide provides the Home Battery Scheme.

Under the scheme, the state government gives all grid-connected South Australians access to subsidies and low-interest loans (provided by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation). This means that the scheme is only accessible to South Australians connected to an authorised distribution network.

Here is a breakdown of the subsidies:

Residential households	$150 per kWh
Energy Concession Holders	$250 per kWh
Maximum subsidy per installed battery system	$2000

How it works 

The home battery scheme subsidy is calculated based on the size (kilowatt-hour) of the battery purchased. This means that the larger your solar batteries, the bigger your subsidy.

However, it is not a flat rate for every household. Regular households will get $150 per kilowatt-hour capacity, while energy concession holders will get $250 per kWh. However, the subsidy is capped at the same value for every household. Whether you qualify as an energy concession holder or as a regular household, you can receive only up to $2,000 under the scheme.  

Know that the subsidy is limited only to the battery component of the solar PV system. It does not affect other components like the inverter or solar panels. However, it is still a good saving to pursue because it can save you up to 30% of the solar battery cost.

You can find qualified system providers for the Home Battery Scheme to provide an installation quote. They will help you choose the best battery storage system for your residential property and rebate options.

Eligibility criteria 

The scheme applies to residential properties only. The SA government approves subsidy applications where:

1. One property qualifies for one subsidy.
2. Your property is connected to an authorised distributed network.
3. The installed battery system is pre-approved and installed by a qualified contractor. Tesla Powerwall is one of the best-known battery solutions.
4. You own the property or have the owner’s consent to install the battery system.
5. Energy concession members must use a 10-kWh battery while other users must install a 15-kWh battery.

How to claim the home battery rebate scheme

The scheme only applies to the battery component of your solar PV system. 

Here is how to apply:

1. Make a loan application through Plenti. You can calculate the loan repayments using Plenti’s Home Battery Scheme finance calculator.

Plenti is the government’s administrator of the Home Battery Scheme subsidies. It receives financing from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
You can apply for additional credit to help you pay the balance of the home battery system and any solar panels you might need.

2. Once you’ve made the application, you will direct that the granted subsidy be paid to a qualified system provider who has completed the Eligible Supply.

The applicant has to certify that the entire subsidy has been used for the intended purpose. This may require certification or an acknowledgment to the SA government.

The qualified system provider must complete the supply on new builds within 6 months or 12 months.

So, the battery storage subsidy is different from a solar rebate which is usually a partial refund on the installation cost. The subsidy is a sum of money that the government gives to the industry to reduce the cost of a product/ service to customers.  

You can apply for more than one subsidy if you have multiple residential properties. However, you can only get one subsidy for each property. You would need to provide each property’s National Metering Identifier (NMI) when making an application.

2. City of Adelaide sustainability incentive scheme

The city of Adelaide supports its residents and organizations with sustainable solutions through the Adelaide Sustainability Incentives Scheme. The scheme provides financial incentives for the installations of sustainable technology in residential and commercial buildings in the city of Adelaide in order to improve energy performance. 

The incentives will reduce your installation costs. When your system is up and running, it also reduces your carbon emissions. Importantly, having a sustainable energy system on your property significantly increases the value of the property.

Under the City of Adelaide Sustainability Incentives Scheme, the rebates for commercial properties and apartments are as follows:

Maximum rebate	Description
$5000	Commercial solar systems
$5000	Charging equipment for electric vehicles
$5000	Greenhouse gas inventory$2500 more for taking additional steps
$5000	Green Star RatingNABERS
$5000	Smart electricity management system optimising solar energy use
$10000	Electric vehicle charging technology with capabilities of a virtual power plant
$20000 (per site)	Shared solar systems for multiple spaces ($500 per premise)

Large projects can receive pre-commitment funding for vehicle-to-grid virtual power plants, carbon-neutral certifications, and shared solar.

Rebates for landlords and homeowners include:

Maximum rebate	Description
$1000	Solar hot water systems
$5000	Electric vehicle charging system
$5000	Electricity management system for off-peak electricity
$5000	Solar PV systems for tenanted households and concession holders
$500	Rainwater tanks

How it works

If you installed any of the systems above within the last 12 months, you are eligible to make a claim. Once you fill out an application form, attach the relevant documents, and email it to the Incentives team. 

Eligibility criteria 

• Businesses, schools, and residential properties located in the City of Adelaide
• Have installed:
  • An approved solar PV system or energy storage system. 
  • An electric vehicle charging system
  • Energy monitoring system
  • Solar hot water system
  • LED downlights
  • Energy efficiency upgrades to apartment building

How to claim the City of Adelaide sustainability incentive scheme

Send an email with the right attachments to the Incentives team. You can find more information about the Sustainability Incentives Scheme from the City of Adelaide government website.

3. Free technical assessment pilot program

The City of Adelaide introduced a pilot program for small businesses to receive free energy assessments and get up to $5,000 towards upgrades.

Small businesses can apply for a free technical assessment from the state government. Once they are reviewed, they receive an assessment report and are eligible for an energy upgrade.

The purpose of the free energy assessments is to help small businesses reduce their energy costs and use energy-saving options. From the assessment reports, businesses can get an 80% rebate for a maximum of $5000 to adopt the proposed energy-saving options.

Some of the upgrades that will be suggested that you’ll be eligible for include:

• Retailers
• Restaurants
• Gyms
• Small accommodations (excluding Airbnb)
• Beauty businesses
• Community-based businesses
• Laundry facilities
• Recreation and sports clubs
• Non-profit organizations

How it works 

Small businesses can apply for a free technical assessment from the state government. Once they are reviewed, they receive an assessment report and are eligible for an energy upgrade.

The purpose of the free energy assessments is to help small businesses reduce their energy costs and use energy-saving options. From the assessment reports, businesses can get an 80% rebate for a maximum of $5000 to adopt the proposed energy-saving options.

Upgrades covered in the rebate include:

• Lighting replacements and additions
• Equipment replacement such as catering equipment.
• Gas to electric or solar hot water system upgrade

Eligibility criteria 

Your business needs to:

• Be among the 50 businesses to join the pilot program
• Be located in Adelaide (both North Adelaide and the CBD)
• Have a valid ABN
• Have up to 20 full-time staff
• Hold a freehold or valid lease

How to claim the rebate

1. Book a free energy assessment,
2. An assessor visits your premises to look at energy appliances and bills. The assessor identifies upgrade areas and drafts a report with an action plan of recommended energy upgrades.
3. Execute the upgrades. 
4. Apply for the rebates online and upload your business tax invoice for upgrade verification. The assessor revisits your premises to verify the changes.
5. Claim a rebate once you’ve paid for the upgrades. You can get an 80% rebate worth a maximum of $5000 to cover the cost of the changes. 

4. Solar feed-in tariffs

Solar feed-in tariffs (FITs) are financial incentives paid to you by electricity retailers for exporting excess electricity from your solar panels to the grid. Electricity retailers in South Australia offer feed-in in tariffs between 5c and 16c per kWh.

Different electricity retailers give different feed-in tariffs. So, you’ll have to switch between electricity retailers to find the one with the highest solar feed-in tariff rate.

However, right now, Discover Energy is the electricity retailer with the best solar feed-in tariff in Adelaide. It offers 16c per kWh of electricity exported to the grid. However, the company caps this at 300 kWh every quarter.

How it works 

Steps:

1. When your panels absorb sunlight, they create an electrical flow (direct current) that flows into an inverter. The inverter converts it into alternating current (AC) for home use.
2. The electricity retailer measures the amount of AC that flows into the meter system and the grid.
3. If you choose not to store the electricity in a home battery, you can feed it to the grid. The electricity retailer measures how much electricity flows into the national grid and pays you in the form of a feed-in tariff.

Your electricity usage determines how much you can get from solar feed-in tariff payments. If you consume more of your solar power system’s electricity, you will not get much in FiT payments. But if you have a lot of excess electricity to export to the grid, you’ll get a lot in FiT payments. That said, if you export more than 40% of your solar energy, choose a higher FIT deal from your electricity retailer.

Eligibility criteria 

1. Have installed solar panels. 
2. Be connected to the grid via an export or import meter. Your solar installer (Instyle Solar) can help you fill in a Network Connection Application and submit it to SA Power Networks.
3. Consume less than 160MWh of electricity annually.
4. Solar PV system satisfies Australian safety standards.
5. Produce a maximum of 10kVa for single-phase residential units or 30kVa for three-phase homes.

5. Small Scale Technology Certificates (STCs)

The small-scale technology certificates (STCs) are federal-level financial incentives for Aussies to save money when switching to renewable energy before the end of 2030. Under this scheme, a South Australian installing a 6kW system in 2022 can get $2,849 or $3,157 as STC incentives.

To encourage Aussies to embrace renewable energy solutions, the Australian government launched the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES). The scheme provides incentives for individuals and small businesses that install small-scale renewable energy systems. It does this through the creation of small-scale technology certificates (STCs). 

Under the scheme, individuals or small businesses who install small-scale renewable energy systems can create STCs which are tradable for real money.

The renewable energy systems that are eligible for STCs are:

• Solar panels
• Wind turbines
• Hydro systems
• Solar water heaters
• Air source heat pumps

How the Small–Scale Technology Certificates Program Works

If you install a solar PV system (or any other eligible renewable energy system), STCs are created for you which are redeemed for AUD amounts. The 

How much you get depends on the number of STCs that your system fetches you and the going rate of each STC.

The price of each STC depends on whether you are selling in the STC open market or in the STC clearinghouse. In the open market, the price of STCs ranges between $36.50 and $38.50, but in the STC clearinghouse, the price is fixed at $40 per STC. 

You can calculate the number of STCs that you’ll get using the formula:

Number of STCs = system size x deeming period x zone rating multiplier

Thus, the number of STCs that your system fetches depends on the size of your system, your deeming period, and your location in Australia.

Size of system. The bigger your system, the more STCs you’ll get. This is because STCs are rewards for creating renewable energy, and a bigger system would create more renewable energy.

Deeming period. This is the number of years an installed system will create renewable energy until 2030 when the scheme will end. The more years you have, the more renewable energy your system will create, so the more STCs you’ll get. When installing a solar system in 2022, your deeming period is 9 years.

Zone rating multiplier. Solar systems in sunnier locations provide more energy. So, you’ll get more STCs if you’re in the sunnier part of the country. For this, the whole of Australia is divided into zones (and rated) according to how sunny they are.

South Australia is not as sunny as the upper part of the country. So, most of the state is in zone 3 (rated 1.382), while only a tiny north-eastern part falls in zone 2 (rated 1.536).

Thus, persons in West Australia installing a 6kW system in 2022 will get 74 STCs. This is calculated: 6 (system size) x 9 (deeming period) x 1.382 (zone rating multiplier). But if you’re in that tiny north-eastern part of the state (rated 1.536), the number of STCs you’ll get for a 6kW system in 2022 is 82.

With each STC currently trading for $38.50 in the open market, most South Australians installing a 6kW system in 2022 will get $2,849 as STC incentives, while those in the sunnier northeast of the state will get $3,157.

Eligibility criteria for the Small scale Technology Certificates

Being that the small-scale renewable energy scheme (SRES) is a federal incentive program, West Australians qualify. However, only systems meeting the following requirements qualify.

• The system must be installed within 12 months of claiming the STCs
• The components of the solar system like inverters and solar panels must be among those approved by the CEC (Clean Energy Council)
• The solar system must meet all Australian standards including all local, state, territory and federal requirements (such as standards for electrical safety)
• The solar system must be installed by a CEC approved solar installers like Instyle Solar and must meet all installation guidelines of the Clean Energy Regulator
• The solar system must be a small scale system not exceeding 100 kW, and its power production must not exceed 250MWh per year

How to Claim the STC

Claiming the STCs is very easy. In fact, you do not have to do anything. This is because the STCs are given as a discount when you are purchasing a solar system.

That is, when you are buying solar, the STCs are created and automatically assigned to your solar installer. The installer calculates what your STs are worth and deducts the sum from your installation costs. The installer can later worry about selling the STCs.

Thus, when you get a solar quote, it is usually an amount minus the STC incentives. That is, if the gross cost of a 6kW new solar system in South Australia in 2022 is $6,650, the quote you’ll receive from a solar installer will be $3,849 (this is $6,650 less $2,849 STC incentives). And if you’re in the sunnier northeastern part, you’ll be quoted $3,493 (this is $6,650 less $3,157 STC incentives).

Conclusion

The must-know solar incentives and rebates in SA are 

• Home battery scheme
• Adelaide’s sustainability incentives scheme
• Free technical assessment scheme
• Feed-in tariffs

The incentives may not last to infinity. If you own a residential property or business, now is the time to go solar. Take advantage of these rebates with the help of a certified installer

Instyle Solar is your choice of reputable and reliable solar installation services. We are ready to help you with a home assessment or solar quote.

Our Guides to Solar Rebates, Incentives and More

We have a series of unique guides to solar, solar finance, batteries and more, if you are looking to do more in-depth research into solar rebates check the below:

1. What Are Solar STC’s?
In this regard, the Australian government has provided incentives under the Solar Credit Program to encourage the installation of solar power systems. STCs or Small-scale Technology Certificates are incentives provided to small-scale energy generators. The most common example is the residential facilities.

2. How To Claim STCs
You can claim small-scale technology certificates (STCs) by assigning them at the point of sale to a registered agent like a retailer or solar installer. Each STC claim is unique to an installation. However, you can make more than one STC claim if you use different addresses for each installation. 

3. Full List of Australian Solar Rebates & Incentives 2022

State-Based solar incentives in Australia offer low-interest loans, interest-free loans, free solar system installation, or free battery installation. The incentives are given depending on your state location. However, you receive solar incentives only if you are eligible. 

4. Australian Solar Rebates & Incentives for Businesses

There are many incentives that business owners in Australia with solar power can enjoy. Some of them include Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs), Feed-in Tariffs, Retailer Energy Productivity Scheme (REPS), and more. These incentives promote the adoption of solar by lowering the installation costs.

Next Steps…

Interested in solar? By clicking below you can use our smart solar calculator to find out just how much you could save with solar, what rebate you are eligible for, and the impact you will have on the environment.

Don’t wait until next quarter’s bloated bill, and get started today!

Click here to calculate your solar savings!

Join over 20,000 homeowners who have made the switch with Instyle Solar, or the 1000+ positive reviewers who have been more than happy with their solar install.

Otherwise, you can always contact us on 1300 133 556, or email if you prefer at sales@instylesolar.com.au.