For residents that have installed a solar panel system in New South Wales (NSW), it is possible to feed surplus power through the connected grid. If you do so, you will be eligible for one of many solar feed-in tariffs in NSW. This is the payment that your power company will give in return.
When considering whether to sell your excess power or store it in a local battery for later use, it is relevant to look at the solar feed-in tariffs in NSW. The size of your feed-in tariff will decide how much you will get paid.
In this article, you will get an overview of the solar feed-in tariffs in New South Wales.
This is how solar feed-in tariffs work
A solar feed-in tariff may be considered as an incentive to encourage people to sell their surplus power to the grid. In the beginning, it would also make it more beneficial for Tasmanians to install a solar panel system.
A solar system used to be more expensive than it is today, which also explains why the incentives are lower today than they used to be.
Based on the size of your solar feed-in tariff (or the FIT rate), you will receive a certain payment from your power provider. The payment is calculated based on the amount of kWh that is fed through the grid.
The FIT rate might differ significantly from provider to provider. At the same time, the Australian government has set a minimum tariff in some areas.
Is there a minimum solar feed-in tariff in NSW?
No, at the moment there is not any minimum feed-in tariff set by the government in NSW. Despite this, you will be able to find beneficial deals as the competition is strong between the different providers. They all want to be your power provider.
So, the individual power retailer sets their value for minimum and maximum solar feed-in tariffs in NSW. And that might give you access to reasonable tariffs.
Which energy provider will give you the best solar feed-in tariff in NSW?
In New South Wales you will find many different power providers, and most of them offer a certain minimum and maximum feed-in tariff to their customers. But remember, the tariffs will be updated regularly.
So, which one is the best? Whether the deal is beneficial or not for the customer, will depend on the customer’s solar panel system size, production rate and other factors. Because of this, it is difficult to name one of the providers as the “best” choice for everyone.
But if you are looking for a power retailer in NSW, some of these can be worth checking out:
- Simply Energy
- Red Energy
- Energy Locals
- GloBird Energy
- AGL
- Energy Australia
- Powershop
- Origin Energy
- Dodo
- OVO Energy
- Sumo
How to find the best FIT rate
The benchmark rate in 2023/24 – according to the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) – is around 7.7 to 9.4 cents / kWh. Some of the providers can offer solar feed-in tariffs way higher than this, presumably to attract new customers.
Anyhow, it is worth noting that a seemingly good offer is not necessarily as good as you might think. Often, the solar feed-in tariff is high in the first months. After the initial period, the FIT rate might drop dramatically.
You should also be aware that the power provider sometimes will give you a great solar feed-in tariff, but at the same time increase your electricity costs or base rates. If so, the offer might not be very beneficial in the long run.
The feed-in tariff in NSW throughout the years
More than ten years ago solar panel systems were still very expensive. Because of that, the government decided to offer an incentive to make the installation of PV panels more appealing.
Starting in January 2010, residents in NSW would receive a generous feed-in tariff which gave them 60 cents / kWh for a period of seven years. This scheme ended in December 2016.
Today, solar panel systems are more affordable. Because of that, the incentives might not be as good as they once were. But remember, you will still be able to get a generous federal rebate when installing the PV system. This will reduce your initial costs by almost one-third.
Find the best solar feed-in tariff for your household
Are you living in NSW, and planning to install a PV system? Or do you already have a solar panel system? Either way, you will be able to earn some money if you transfer excess power from your PV system to the grid.
To get a beneficial deal, you should compare the quotes given by the different power providers. Thanks to the competitive market, it is likely that you will be able to find a beneficial feed-in tariff that fits your needs.