Low interest loans to be part of Marshall home battery plan
HOUSEHOLDS would get access to low-interest loans to finance solar panels and battery systems under a plan being developed by the state and federal Governments.
HOUSEHOLDERS would get access to $100 million worth of low-interest loans to help pay for solar panels and battery systems under a finance plan being developed by the state and federal governments.
The Federal Government’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation has signed a memorandum of understanding for a loan deal to underpin the State Government’s new $100 million household battery rebate scheme.
Under the State Government’s scheme, to be launched next month, an estimated 40,000 households would be able to receive a maximum $6000 grant to buy a smart battery to store their solar power.
The Commonwealth finance will extend the loan assistance to solar panels as well.
Energy Minster Dan van Holst Pellekaan, who is finetuning the specifics of the finance deal with the corporation, said that it would help provide more affordable, reliable and secure energy to residents.
“In working with the corporation, we expect to be able to further assist households overcome the upfront financial barriers to accessing storage technology by offering households competitive, flexible loans where needed, in addition to the subsidies,” he said.
CEFO chief executive Ian Learmonth said the deal would allow South Australians to access tailored finance for their home energy storage systems.
Home batteries retail for about $10,000, allowing backup during blackouts or load-shedding, as well as the ability to store energy and sell it back to the grid.
The State Government battery subsidy scheme, a major plank of its election bid, will be scaled in line with the size of the home battery system being installed.
Low-income households eligible for an energy concessions discount card will get an additional 20 per cent subsidy.
The deal means a large battery providing 10kWh of storage could receive a $5000 subsidy or up to $6000 for concession holders. A small battery with 5kWh of storage per household could receive a $2500 subsidy or a $3000 subsidy for concession holders.