“In contrast, the two NSW city-based networks together operate around 80,000 kilometres of powerlines supplying more than 2 million customers.”

The Australian Energy Market Commission changed the rules three years ago, and the Australian Energy Regulator approved the new pricing structures for NSW distributors at the end of April.

Loading

AEMC chairperson Anna Collyer said St Vincent de Paul Society Victoria, the Australian Council of Social Service, the Total Environment Centre, and SA Power Networks had all advocated for the change back in 2021.

“The reforms acknowledge that Australia has the fastest rate of solar take-up in the world and reflect concerns from industry, energy market bodies, consumer and environmental groups and other experts that without action, the grid will be unable to handle the volume of solar forecast to double over the next decade,” Collyer said.

All three NSW distributors will provide a free threshold for daytime solar exports and charge a network fee when households exceed that, as well as pay rewards for shifting the solar exports to times of peak demand. While solar panels don’t work at night, households with home batteries, which cost upwards of $9000, can store the electricity they produce to sell it to the grid later.

Loading

All three companies have different thresholds, charges, and rewards. The Endeavour spokesperson said the average exporting customer would be $5 a year better off, while an Ausgrid spokesperson said a typical solar customer would see an increase in their bill of only $6.60 a year.

St Vincent de Paul Society executive manager of policy and research Gavin Dufty said: “From an equity point of view, all these non-solar households: why should they have to pay to build out a network for solar households to export?”

However, solar advocates say it unfairly punishes people who invested in solar panels in good faith and protects the old model of the grid based on large-scale operators.

Former NSW energy minister Matt Kean said: “It’s obvious that the solution here is more storage on the grid. Where everyone shares in the benefits, not just those that can afford a battery at home. The NSW government can solve this problem now by using the powers of the legislated road map to allow networks to build community batteries at pace.”

Sources in the Minns government point out this is already happening. The 2023 NSW budget allocated $1 billion from the Restart NSW fund for the Energy Security Corporation, a state-owned body that will invest in projects including community batteries, pumped hydro and grid stability technology alongside the private sector.

Get to the heart of what’s happening with climate change and the environment. Sign up for our fortnightly Environment newsletter.