Australians to Get Three Hours of Free Electricity Every Day Under Solar Scheme

upstart writes:

A new scheme will help to share the benefits of solar power in the daytime:

Australian households will be able to access free electricity for three hours every day, in an effort to encourage energy use when excess solar power is being fed into the grid.

The federal government scheme will require retailers to offer free electricity to households for at least three hours in the middle of the day, when there is often more electricity generated than is being used, leading to very cheap or even negative wholesale prices.

The Solar Sharer scheme will initially be introduced to consumers in default market offer regions like NSW, south-east Queensland and South Australia from July next year, with consultation to extend the scheme to other jurisdictions by 2027.

Households with smart meters will be able to run washers and dryers, air conditioning or any other appliances for free within the three-hour window.

Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen said the scheme would share around the benefits of solar panels, including to those without panels or who rented their homes.

"There is so much power in the middle of the day now that often the prices are very cheap or negative and this should be something, by our analysis, that energy companies can incorporate and offer," Mr Bowen told the ABC.

"It's not a silver bullet, and it is part of a suite of measures, but it's a good one. No one would claim that one particular policy solves all the challenges in the energy market."

Mr Bowen added that modern technology had made it easier for people to schedule appliances to start in the middle of the day, when electricity would be free.

"We want to see the benefits of renewable energy flow to all, even those without solar panels or batteries," he said.

But retailers have reacted with surprise to the announcement, saying it had not been raised in consultations on reforms to the network.

"This lack of consultation risks damaging industry confidence, as well as creating the potential for unintended consequences," the Australian Energy Council's chief executive Louisa Kinnear said in a statement.

[...] The government said the shift in demand was expected to lower costs for everyone by reducing peak demand in the evening, which would also minimise the need for "costly" network upgrades to ensure grid stability.

The federal government has been under pressure to address power price concerns, as state and federal rebates come off, and with a recent uptick in inflation as a consequence.

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