According to Business SA, wholesale electricity prices in South Australia have increased 25% in the last 9 months. It’s already hurting industry and could soon be apparent on the power bills of households and smaller businesses too.
A recently published article on Adelaide Now states wholesale electricity costs jumped significantly after an announcement last year concerning the closure of the power station at Port Augusta.
“While the recent rises in the wholesale energy market have to date mostly impacted energy-intensive users such as food and beverage manufacturers and irrigators, the rises will soon flow on to smaller businesses and residential customers,” warned Business SA’s senior policy adviser, Andrew McKenna.
Given the spectre of further electricity bill shocks, it’s perhaps a good time for non-solar households and businesses to consider installing a residential or commercial solar power system.
South Australia has the highest saturation of solar PV arrays in Australia per capita; but there’s still many rooftops throughout the state without solar panels that could be benefiting from tapping the energy of the sun.
The Adelaide Now article states the Australian Energy Regulator estimates the average South Australian residential customer’s electricity bill was $1,803 this financial year.
According to Energy Matters, a good quality 5.2kW battery-ready solar power system installed in Adelaide can return a financial benefit of up to $2,282 a year, depending on installation scenario and consumption profile.
A truly battery-ready system provides the option of installing energy storage solutions such as Tesla Powerwall at a later date with minimum fuss.
The main benefit of installing batteries at present is saving the high value electricity a rooftop PV array generates. This can be used during the evening and periods when consumption exceeds generation; instead of exporting surplus electricity to the mains grid and only receiving a few cents per kilowatt hour for it.
Even a system without storage can be a solid investment, offering more control over energy costs and a buffer against future electricity price rises.
In addition to existing subsidies available nationally for the purchase of solar energy systems, South Australians with a home or business in Adelaide’s CBD can also take advantage of up to $10,000 in grants from Adelaide City Council to install solar + storage.
