Various generous feed-in tariff (FiT) schemes, including NSW’s 60c Solar Bonus Scheme, will come to an end on the 31st December 2016. It is estimated that over 275, 000 households in Australia will be affected by these changes to feed-in tariffs. For PV system owners in states other than NSW, feed-in tariff rates will be reduced from around 16c-25c/kWh to 5c-7c/kWh. However, NSW system owners on the solar bonus scheme may also face the additional cost and imposition of having to replace or reconfigure the existing meter to allow for net metering so that they can maximise the benefit of their system.
These changes present an opportunity for PV system owners, regardless of their location, to rethink their energy use. For system owners in NSW, the end of the scheme also gives system owners the chance to install a smart meter, which might be done for free – depending on the retailer.
It has also been flagged that households having previously received greatly reduced energy bills will be more willing to spend money on an energy storage system as a hedge against rising energy costs.
State government may already have notified households regarding the end of these schemes and system owners may be seeking advice from their PV system provider regarding their best way forward. This document seeks to provide some guidance in this respect.