Homes to cash in on solar power batteries in draft plan

As the nation’s renewable energy push continues, a plan has been hatched to make it more attractive to install batteries for home solar.

Households could make cash from “innovative” energy companies paying for their home solar battery power, under a draft plan from the energy regulator.

The proposal, to be released today by the Australian Energy Market Commission, is seeking to cut red tape to get more battery storage power into the electricity grid.

But it will include opportunities for ordinary residents who have been able to install home batteries to back up their solar panels.

Home batteries for solar panels could soon be a source on cash for households, under a draft proposal from the Australian Energy Market Commission.

It would allow them to sign up with “innovative new aggregator businesses”, which could be existing retailers like AGL or new players in the energy market, who will pay them for using their battery at certain times.

While the cost of batteries can be prohibitive, ranging from $4000 to $15,000 depending on size, AEMC is expecting the plan could make home batteries more attractive.

AEMC chair Anna Collyer said, if the draft plan was approved, energy service providers could offer to buy power from households with a home solar battery.

Prices and demand would depending on when the battery is charging or discharging and when it was advantageous to the energy grid to access more power.

“An ordinary man on the street doesn’t really want to be engaged in doing that, but if someone comes along and offers to do it for them, that may be a way that’s attractive to them to save money on their energy bill,” Ms Collyer said.

She said it would make home batteries more attractive to help maximise investment in solar.

The reforms would allow the power to be sold into the wholesale energy market, with the current rules written before the technology making the process more difficult.

AEMC chair Anna Collyer is launching a draft plan from the energy market commission on Thursday.

Ms Collyer said there were too many variables at this stage to estimate how much money a household could make, including the number of solar panels, size of the batteries, markets the customer is selling to and the deal offered to them.

The draft plan is out for consultation until September 16 with a final decision to be made in October.

It would see the new battery scheme rolled out in mid-2023 if approved.