The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) is committing $100 million in loan finance to assist South Australia’s home battery rollout.
The loan will cover upfront costs of home battery installation not met by existing state subsidies.
The South Australian Home Battery Scheme (HBS) offers subsidies of up to $6,000 for residents. This covers installation of energy storage systems like sonnen and Enphase batteries and the Tesla Powerwall 2.
Investors also benefit from home battery rollout
Loan company RateSetter is commissioned to deliver the CEFC loan financing scheme. This is a new renewable energy lending market specific to South Australia.
South Australian retail investors will therefore be encouraged to invest in the HBS via RateSetter. Institutional investors like banks, credit unions and superannuation funds will also be encouraged to invest.
Around 40,000 South Australian households are already accessing the government subsidies for home batteries.
The CEFC funding will therefore give eligible households a chance to finance the unsubsidised portion subject to credit approval. It also helps residents finance rooftop solar installations if they don’t currently have one.
Victoria also boosting solar battery storage
The Victorian state government is also encouraging solar battery uptake. It has pledged to offer half-price solar batteries to households if re-elected in November.
The $40 million battery storage plan is part of the Andrews Government’s Solar Homes initiative.
This means eligible homeowners could therefore save up to $4,838 on their solar battery system. As a result electricity bills could be slashed by about $650 per year using a typical 11 kWh solar storage battery.
Under the scheme, the government will rebate half the cost of a solar panel installation for 24,000 households.
Battery storage options expanding in Australia
Energy storage options for households and businesses in Australia are constantly growing.
Tesla and the South Australian government are together developing the world’s largest virtual power plant. This will connect at least 50,000 solar storage systems state-wide.
Meanwhile, German battery giant sonnen is establishing its Asian Pacific HQ in Adelaide. Users of the sonnen home battery can also join the sonnenFlat energy scheme.
SonnenFlat gives eligible households an annual electricity supply for a flat fee starting at $30 a month, with no bills involved.
