Podcasts

SwitchedOn podcast: Is the cheaper home batteries scheme “a colossal wasted opportunity”?

Published by

The federal government’s Cheaper Home Batteries Program is being hailed as a clean energy win, cutting installation costs and driving more than a thousand new batteries into homes every day.

But Reposit Power co-founder and CEO Dean Spaccavento calls it “a colossal wasted opportunity.” He says while the scheme is “excellent in its scope,” weak regulation, vague technical standards, and poor oversight mean only a tiny fraction of those batteries will ever help stabilise the grid.

After more than a decade pushing to make household energy “punch at weight” with big utilities, Spaccavento argues Australia risks missing a critical moment to build a truly distributed, consumer-powered energy system.

Anne Delaney is the host of the SwitchedOn podcast and our Electrification Editor. She has had a successful career in journalism (the ABC and SBS), as a documentary film maker, and as an artist and sculptor.

Anne Delaney

Anne Delaney is the host of the SwitchedOn podcast and our Electrification Editor. She has had a successful career in journalism (the ABC and SBS), as a documentary film maker, and as an artist and sculptor.

Share
Published by

Recent Posts

Australia’s first environmental standards promise protection – but raise concerns

Tougher rules to protect Australia's environment have been welcomed by developers, but conservation groups say…

21 August 2026

Energy Insiders Podcast: El Niño is coming

Karl Braganza, head of research at the BoM, explains El Niño and what it means…

21 August 2026

Gas is getting left behind as solar-charged batteries step in to the breach

Freshly minted NEM data shows solar-charged batteries discharging at record levels, helping lower wholesale prices…

21 August 2026

Batteries have flattened the solar duck curve, and their profit margins at the same time

It is now well established that the combination of new renewables and the huge growth…

21 August 2026

New renewables pilot seeks to generate power, and financial returns, for First Nations communities

Remote First Nations renewable energy projects are a complicated sell to investors, but a new…

21 August 2026

Sod turned at first Hunter REZ project – a solar farm and battery at site of former coal mine

Sod turned at first major solar and battery project to connect to new REZ, at…

21 August 2026