If you installed solar years ago on a healthy feed-in tariff and have watched it shrink, you're not imagining it. The economics of exporting have changed across NSW, and it changes how new systems should be designed.
Why it happened
So much rooftop solar now feeds the grid in the middle of the day that midday energy is worth very little wholesale — occasionally less than nothing. Retailers price feed-in accordingly. Meanwhile the power you buy back in the evening peak costs several times what your exports earn.
What it means in practice
Every kilowatt-hour you use yourself is worth roughly what you'd otherwise pay to buy it. Every kilowatt-hour you export is worth a fraction of that. Self-consumption, not export, is where the money is.
Ways to lift self-consumption
- Shift heavy loads — dishwasher, washing machine, pool pump — into daylight hours.
- Use a timer or diverter to heat water with surplus solar.
- Charge an electric vehicle during the day where your routine allows.
- Store the surplus in a battery and use it after sunset.
Where storage fits
A battery converts near-worthless exports into energy that offsets peak-rate purchases. That's why battery payback has improved even as feed-in rates have fallen — the gap between what you're paid and what you pay is exactly what storage captures.
Also worth knowing
Some households now face charges for exporting during high-solar periods under two-way pricing arrangements. Whether this affects you depends on your retailer and plan, but it reinforces the same conclusion: design for using your own power, not for sending it away.
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