Two federal rebates come off your price at point of sale: the Cheaper Home Batteries rebate for a home battery, and small-scale technology certificates (STCs) for solar panels. We build both into every design and do all the paperwork.
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Federal battery rebate (Cheaper Home Batteries Program)
Work out your battery rebate: Battery Rebate Calculator
The Cheaper Home Batteries Program is the Australian Government’s discount on installing a small-scale battery. It runs through the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme, administered by the Clean Energy Regulator, the same scheme that gives the solar panel rebate. An eligible battery creates small-scale technology certificates (STCs). Those certificates have a market value, and as your installer we take that value off your price at point of sale. You don’t apply for anything yourself.
How many locals have used it so far? The Clean Energy Regulator records 7,163 home batteries installed across our Northern Rivers postcodes from July 2025 to August 2026: see the official solar and battery numbers by town.
- Who can get it: Australian households, businesses and community organisations.
- Battery size: systems between 5 and 100 kWh nominal capacity. Certificates are only created for the first 50 kWh of usable capacity.
- New or existing solar: it applies to batteries connected to new or existing rooftop solar, so you can add a battery to the solar you already have.
- One battery claim per property: only one battery system per premises can create STCs.
- Runs to 2030: the program is open until 31 December 2030, with the rebate stepping down every six months.
Which batteries are eligible for the federal rebate?
According to the Clean Energy Regulator, to create STCs the battery must:
- be on the Clean Energy Council (CEC) approved battery list
- be new (made within 12 months of the install date) and never installed before
- have a nominal capacity between 5 and 100 kWh
- be technically capable of joining a virtual power plant (VPP), if it is connected to the grid
- be installed to AS/NZS 5139:2019 and state electrical safety laws
- be installed by a Solar Accreditation Australia (SAA) accredited installer with a battery endorsement
We are an SAA-accredited installer and a fully licensed NSW electrical contractor, and we install batteries from premium to mid-tier and more: Sigenergy (premium), GoodWe (mid-tier, the ESA all-in-one with 8 kWh modules), plus Sungrow, Solax and Tesla. We check the exact model against the approved list before it goes in your proposal.
How much is the federal battery rebate?
It depends on the size of your battery, the date it is installed and the market price of STCs at the time. The number of certificates is your battery’s usable capacity (in kWh) multiplied by the STC factor for the install date. Bigger batteries are tapered:
| Usable capacity | Share of the STC factor applied |
|---|---|
| First 14 kWh | Full factor (100%) |
| Over 14 kWh, up to 28 kWh | 60% of the factor |
| Over 28 kWh, up to 50 kWh | 15% of the factor |
| Over 50 kWh | No certificates |
Because STCs trade on a market, the dollar value moves a little over time, so we don’t publish a single rebate amount. Your proposal shows the exact rebate for your battery, already taken off the price. If you want to check the maths yourself, the Clean Energy Regulator links to an STC calculator on its solar batteries page.
We size the battery to how you actually use power, from your bills, not to chase the rebate. See battery sizing from your power bills.
Battery rebate step-down from 1 January 2027
The STC factor for batteries steps down every six months until the scheme ends in 2030. The factor that applies is the one on the day your battery is installed, not the day you get a quote or sign.
| Battery installed | STC factor |
|---|---|
| 1 May to 31 December 2026 | 6.8 |
| 1 January to 30 June 2027 | 5.7 |
| 1 July to 31 December 2027 | 5.2 |
| 1 January to 30 June 2028 | 4.6 |
| 1 July to 31 December 2028 | 4.1 |
It keeps falling after that, to 2.1 for the second half of 2030. So the same battery creates fewer certificates with each step. If you were going ahead anyway, an install before 1 January keeps the higher factor. A proper job still takes a few steps (energy assessment, design, a site visit and a connection application to Essential Energy), and we’ll tell you honestly whether an install date before a step-down is realistic. More detail: battery rebate step-down in 2027.
Adding a battery to existing solar
Yes, the battery rebate applies when you add a battery to the solar you already have. On your energy assessment we check whether your panels can cover your daytime use and charge a battery for the night. If they can, it’s a battery only job. If not, we design the extra solar you need, and that new solar earns solar STCs too. Before install day we check the battery position and your switchboard, including any RCBO upgrades, on a face-to-face site visit. See adding a battery to existing solar and blackout backup batteries.
Already have a battery? Extra capacity can only create STCs if your first battery never claimed them, you add at least 5 kWh, and the total stays under 100 kWh.
Is there a NSW battery rebate for homes? (as of October 2026)
As of October 2026, the NSW Government does not offer its own upfront discount on installing a home battery. Its battery discount under the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme is now for businesses and apartment buildings (see business solar and battery rebates). Households get their upfront battery discount from the federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program above.
What NSW does offer households is the virtual power plant (VPP) incentive: a payment for connecting an eligible battery to a VPP. As of October 2026 it is open with no closing date, and since 1 July 2026 batteries from 2 kWh up to 50 kWh are eligible. The amount depends on how much battery capacity you make available to the grid (counted up to 28 kWh) and on the VPP provider and contract you choose, and it can be claimed once per electricity meter. The VPP provider pays it, as an upfront payment, instalments or bill credit, and it comes on top of the federal battery rebate.
A VPP isn’t right for everyone, because it gives the provider some say over when your battery charges and discharges. We’ll tell you honestly whether it suits you. See should I join a virtual power plant? and the NSW Government’s VPP incentive page.
