The Australian government’s new Solar Sharer initiative has been welcomed by leading clean energy advocates as a major step toward making solar energy more accessible and equitable — particularly for renters and apartment residents who have struggled to access the savings rooftop solar provides.
The scheme, which will offer Australians at least three free hours of electricity during the day, aims to help households cash in on the solar energy boom and bring down power bills for more people across the nation.
“Solar Sharer is a great start — it’s smart, fair policy that helps renters and apartment residents tap into our rooftop solar advantage,” said Heidi Lee Douglas, CEO of Solar Citizens.
Douglas said this approach represents a sensible and progressive way to lower energy costs. He warned that abandoning Net Zero targets, as the Nationals have done, would not cut power prices but actually push them higher.
According to Douglas, the real danger to affordable energy lies in relying on outdated coal plants and costly gas.
However, while the announcement is being praised as a breakthrough for energy fairness, advocates argue that more action is needed to ensure every Australian can benefit from cheap, clean rooftop solar power, regardless of their housing situation.
“Now we need to build on this with a dedicated Solar for Renters policy, tied to state-based minimum energy efficiency standards, to overcome the split incentive dilemma that locks millions of renters – one third of our homes – out of solar savings,” Douglas said.
Solar Citizens says that the Solar Sharer program will also help Australians better understand and manage their energy bills by encouraging the use of electricity during the middle of the day, when solar energy is plentiful and prices are lowest.
“Rooftop solar is one of Australia’s greatest energy success stories — and this reform shapes pricing mechanisms to reflect that success, rather than penalising it with clumsy export charges like the so-called ‘sun tax’,” Douglas said.
“Load-shifting is easy — and this will help more people see the benefits,” she added.
“Running your washing machine, dishwasher or air conditioner in the middle of the day makes use of clean, cheap power and helps cool your home for the evening when power is more expensive. Behaviour change like this is smarter and cheaper than building expensive new transmission.”
Douglas emphasised the broader impact of understanding energy use: “Power is already cheapest during the day, when we have an abundance of solar energy flowing into the grid from neighbouring homes.
“But many people understand this or understand their electricity bills.
“Solar Sharer will encourage a better understanding by many more Australians about how to change their behaviour to bring down their energy bills, and do better for the environment and for the energy grid.
“Australia’s solar success story proves that when people are empowered, the clean energy transition becomes fairer, faster, and better for everyone.”
The industry group Rewiring Australia also applauded the Solar Sharer energy reform as a timely boost for households struggling with rising costs.
“(This) announcement is a big win for consumers across the energy system, especially for renters and apartments who often miss out on savings from having their own solar panels,” said Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom.
Under the new scheme, energy retailers will be required to offer a competitively priced plan that includes three or more free hours of electricity in the middle of each day — the period when the grid has an abundance of cheap solar power.
Vierboom said that during the middle of the day, the electricity grid is powered by abundant, low-cost solar energy, with wholesale prices often falling to zero or even below.
He explained that the Solar Sharer reform would require energy retailers to pass on these very low prices to customers for at least three hours each day.
According to Vierboom, that window is long enough for households to heat water, cool their homes, run pool equipment, or charge an electric vehicle — potentially saving them hundreds of dollars annually.
Incentivising energy use around midday is also expected to lower costs of running the energy grid itself by reducing costly evening peak demand and cutting the need for expensive upgrades.
The initial rollout of Solar Sharer will cover New South Wales, South-East Queensland, and South Australia from July next year, with plans for national expansion by 2027 as 100 per cent smart meter coverage is targeted by 2030.
“With this free midday energy now available across all homes, we’re calling on the government to keep stepping up to help Australians lower bills by supporting them to switch to all-electric appliances and cars.
“Over 100,000 people have already used the Cheaper Home Batteries subsidy, and we should expand it to cover standalone batteries and smart EV chargers that can use Solar Sharer plans,” Vierboom said.
Vierboom advocated for broader access to flexible financing to support households transitioning to all-electric living, and called for updated rental standards so that electric appliances replace gas ones as they reach the end of their lifespan.
