The federal program: what it is and how it works
The Cheaper Home Batteries Program launched on 1 July 2025 and is the biggest structural change to battery economics in Australian history. The scheme provides a discount of around 30 per cent on the upfront cost of installing eligible small-scale battery systems between 5 kWh and 100 kWh, applied at the point of sale by the installer.
Your customer does not apply separately or wait for a payment. The discount comes off their quote.
The mechanism is the same as the solar panel rebate that has been running for years. When an accredited installer completes a compliant battery installation, Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs) are generated based on the battery's usable capacity, with STCs claimable on the first 50 kWh of usable capacity per property.
There is no means test. It is available to households, small businesses and community organisations, and only one battery system per premises is eligible. A battery must be installed in a single job with a new or existing solar PV system, must be on the Clean Energy Council's approved product list, and the installation must be supervised on site by a Solar Accreditation Australia (SAA)-accredited installer. Eligibility criteria are listed here.
The battery does not need to be enrolled in a Virtual Power Plant (VPP), but the inverter it is connected to must be VPP-capable. That rules out some older or imported models. All major brands stocked by Renewables Warehouse, including AlphaESS, Sungrow and Enphase, meet this requirement.
Funded through 2030
On 13 December 2025, the federal government announced it would expand the program from an original estimate of $2.3 billion to around $7.2 billion over four years, in response to demand that exceeded original projections. The expanded funding is intended to support more than 2 million battery installations by 2030, delivering around 40 GWh of additional storage capacity nationally.
For installers, this expansion matters because it removes the uncertainty about whether the program would continue. It is funded through to 31 December 2030. The question is not whether the rebate will exist, but how much it will be worth when your customer installs.
What changed on 1 May 2026
Two changes came into effect on 1 May 2026, following amendments to the Renewable Energy (Electricity) Regulations 2001 finalised on 5 February 2026. Both affect the dollar value of the discount.
Change 1: The STC factor stepped down, and will keep stepping down
The STC factor determines how many certificates are generated per kilowatt-hour of usable battery capacity. From January to April 2026 the factor was 8.4 STCs per kWh. From May 2026 it dropped to 6.8. The Clean Energy Regulator has now published the full schedule of step-downs through to the end of the program in 2030, occurring every six months from May 2026 onward.
| Period | STC factor (per kWH) |
|---|---|
| 2026, January to April | 8.4 |
| 2026, May to December | 6.8 |
| 2027, January to June | 5.7 |
| 2027, July to December | 5.2 |
| 2028, January to June | 4.6 |
| 2028, July to December | 4.1 |
| 2029, January to June | 3.6 |
| 2029, July to December | 3.1 |
| 2030, January to June | 2.6 |
| 2030, July to December | 2.1 |
At a prevailing STC price of around $37 net of administration costs, the May 2026 step-down moved the discount from roughly $311 per usable kWh to roughly $252 per usable kWh on a standard battery. For a typical 10 kWh battery, that is the difference between a rebate of around $3,110 and around $2,520.
The message for customers is simple: the rebate is most generous today, and every subsequent step-down is locked in regardless of when they install.
Change 2: A tiered structure for larger batteries
Before May 2026, every eligible kilowatt-hour up to 50 kWh received the same STC factor. From May 2026, the factor now tapers by capacity tier, intended to keep the discount at around 30 per cent for typical household-sized systems while reducing the incentive to oversize purely to maximise rebate value.
| Capacity band | STC factor applies | Approx. rebate per kWh (at $37/STC) |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 14 kWh | 100% | ~$252 |
| Above 14 kWh to 28 kWh | 60% | ~$151 |
| Above 28 kWh to 50 kWh | 15% | ~$38 |
For most residential customers, a battery in the 10 to 14 kWh range captures the full per-kWh rebate rate. Systems between 14 and 28 kWh still receive meaningful support. Above 28 kWh, the rebate contribution becomes modest.
State by state: what stacks on top
The federal rebate operates in every state and territory. Several states also run additional programs that can be combined with it. For installers working across RW's key markets, here is the current position, current as at June 2026.
ACT: Sustainable Household Scheme
Canberra customers can stack the federal rebate with a low-interest loan through the ACT Sustainable Household Scheme. Eligible households can borrow $2,000 to $15,000 at 3 per cent interest, repayable over up to 10 years, with no establishment fees. From 1 July 2026, the maximum loan limit rises to $20,000 for new applicants.
Demand has shifted heavily toward batteries since the federal program launched. Battery systems accounted for 53 per cent of all Sustainable Household Scheme loan applications in the 2025-26 financial year, up from 10 per cent before July 2025, with more than 12,000 batteries installed in the ACT through the scheme.
Concession card holders may also access a zero-interest loan of up to $10,000 and a rebate of up to $5,000 through the related Home Energy Support Program.
NSW: VPP incentive only, no direct installation rebate
NSW no longer offers a direct battery installation rebate. The former incentive closed on 30 June 2025 and cannot be combined with the federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program. What remains is the NSW Virtual Power Plant incentive, an upfront payment for connecting an eligible battery to an approved VPP, which can be combined with the federal discount. The incentive applies to batteries between 2 and 28 kWh.
The exact value depends on battery size and the value of Peak Reduction Certificates at the time of connection. After administration costs, most households see a net benefit in the order of $700 to $1,500.
WA: Synergy and Horizon Power schemes
Western Australia runs the WA Residential Battery Scheme, a state government program providing up to 100,000 rebates, expected to remain open until allocations are exhausted or around 2027, whichever comes first. The rebate applies to the first 10 kWh of usable battery capacity: $130 per kWh, capped at $1,300, for Synergy customers in the South West Interconnected System, and $380 per kWh, capped at $3,800, for Horizon Power customers in regional WA.
Participation in an approved Virtual Power Plant is a mandatory condition of the WA rebate, not optional. From 1 May 2026, new and upgraded systems in the SWIS must also meet updated technical standards set by Western Power.
An interest-free loan of up to $10,000 is also available to households with combined income under $210,000, repayable over 3 to 10 years. For a Perth customer installing a 10 kWh battery, the combined federal and Synergy rebate brings the total government contribution to somewhere in the order of $3,700 to $4,800, before the interest-free loan is applied to the balance.
Victoria: federal rebate only
The Victorian Solar Homes battery rebate and its associated interest-free loan both closed in late 2024. Victorian customers can access the federal program only. There is no active state battery incentive in Victoria as of June 2026.
Queensland: federal rebate only
Queensland's Battery Booster program closed in May 2024, before the federal program even launched. Queensland customers access the federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program only.
South Australia: federal rebate, VPP incentive largely reserved for priority households
South Australia's Home Battery Scheme closed to new applications in September 2022. A state VPP incentive exists through the Retailer Energy Productivity Scheme (REPS), but in 2026 most of that funding has been prioritised for concession card holders and other priority-group households. General market customers in SA should not assume the REPS incentive will be available.
What installers need to get right
The rebate works in your customer's favour, but it creates compliance obligations for installers that are worth understanding clearly.
- SAA accreditation: the installation must be supervised on site by an installer accredited by Solar Accreditation Australia, which replaced the former Clean Energy Council accreditation scheme. Confirm your accreditation status is current under SAA.
- Battery configuration: an eligible system must meet AS/NZS 5139:2019 and be either a single battery unit or a group of batteries connected to operate as one. Batteries installed without solar PV, storing only grid energy, are not eligible.
- Inverter requirements: the inverter the battery connects to must be VPP-capable and either currently on the CEC's approved inverter list or have been listed at the time the existing solar system was commissioned.
- CEC-approved product list: only batteries on the CEC-approved list are eligible. All major brands available through Renewables Warehouse meet this requirement, but confirm any new or unfamiliar models before quoting.
- One battery per premises: only one solar battery system per address is eligible for STCs. Stackable battery systems can claim STCs for new modules added later, provided the final configuration remains on the approved product list and the SAA-accredited installer re-certifies the entire system.
- Off-grid and edge cases: off-grid batteries more than 1km from the grid have separate eligibility rules and do not need to be VPP-capable. Properties less than 1km from the grid generally do need a VPP-capable system unless written evidence shows grid connection costs exceed $30,000.
The opportunity for installers right now
The federal program triggered a genuine shift in customer behaviour. Three years ago, a battery conversation often ended at the payback period. Today, the conversation starts with what rebates are available and moves quickly to which battery suits the home.
The federal program runs until 31 December 2030, but the value declines every six months on a published, locked-in schedule. The most compelling case for a customer is always today's rate versus a future rate. That is not a high-pressure sales tactic, it is how the scheme is designed. Customers who install in 2026 lock in the current rate. Customers who wait until 2028 or 2029 will receive materially less, and that difference can now be quoted precisely using the table above.
For installers in Canberra, the combination of federal rebate and Sustainable Household Scheme loan, with batteries now making up the majority of scheme applications, creates a genuinely low-cost path to storage for a broad range of customers. For Perth-based installers, the WA Synergy and Horizon Power stack remains one of the more generous combined offers in the country, with the caveat that VPP participation is mandatory.
The brands available through Renewables Warehouse, including AlphaESS, Sungrow and Enphase, are all on the CEC-approved list and qualify for the full federal rebate. The conversation with your customers can start from that premise.