Victoria government resists calls to rein in rooftop solar rebate

One Step Off The Grid

Calls to stanch the flow of Victoria’s rooftop solar rebate by narrowing the eligibility criteria are being resisted by state government, after the entire first month’s quota for applications was filled in just three days.

The Clean Energy Council last week called on the state Labor government to lower the household income threshold from a maximum of $180,000 a year to $100,000, to help better regulate uptake of the subsidy on rooftop panels.

The CEC issued the call in response to growing industry frustration, after the first month’s allotment of 3,333 applications for the solar subsidy was exhausted within days of opening on July 01, effectively putting the scheme on hold – again – until August.

The renewables body said that while it supported the scheme in principle, the way it was being managed was starting to cause serious industry distress, and needed urgent review.

But the government has rejected suggested changes to household income criteria – first proposed by the Smart Energy Council and industry grouping Solar Cutters – arguing that it would only succeed in excluding the majority of dual income households in the state.

“There are no plans to change the eligibility criteria for the Solar Homes program,” energy minister Lily D’Ambrosio said in comments emailed to RenewEconomy.

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