Solgen Energy

Residential

Overview

Switch to Solar - Generate you own Power!

We enjoy the sunniest continent in the world so there is enormous potential for solar generated electricity to make a significant contribution to our energy needs. Solar power is already installed on around Australian 25,000 homes.¹

Currently, our energy needs are derived mostly from high-emission fossil fuels, which are responsible for 50 per cent of our greenhouse gas emissions.²  However, the Federal Government is committed to achieving a clean energy target of 20 per cent by 2020.

Increasing use of green power will produce a rise in power bills. Electricity generators admit Australians will soon be paying far more to power their homes with retail electricity prices expected to increase by more than 50 per cent.³

A Grid Connect Solar System powers your home and sends surplus power back to the Grid. With rising energy prices and generous incentives to install Solar - there's never been a better time to become energy independent.

Solgen Energy design and install high quality, great value Solar Power Systems to fit your home. We make it easy and take care of all the paperwork to help you receive the maximum Government rebate available.

^{1 Power companies warn reducing greenhouse gases could push up inflation, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Broadcast: 21/02/2008. Reporter: John Stewart
2 Green Energy Council
3 Power companies warn reducing greenhouse gases could push up inflation, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Broadcast: 21/02/2008. Reporter: John Stewart}

How we can help you

Solgen Energy installs solar electric systems in homes across Australia. We design and install the right solar electric system for your home. We’ll make it easy and take care of all the paperwork to help you receive the maximum Government rebates and incentives available.

Contact us now and we'll design the right solar system for your home and provide you with a no obligation proposal and quotation. Complete an enquiry form or call us on 1300 660 704 to arrange an inspection.

Our residential systems include:

• The highest quality German made SCHOTT solar electric system fully guaranteed up to 25 years, installed by qualified contractors.
• Monitoring system tailored to client requirements.
• Full project management from sign-off through to completion.
• On-site briefing for home owners.
• Ongoing free on-site service.
• Integrated planning for extensions to existing solar electric system or other renewable energy initiatives.

For more information on our components, please see our partners.

The typical configuration of our systems is illustrated below, the number of modules and the size of the inverter will depend on the size of your installation.  A home installation typically ranges from 1kW to 5kW.

1. The sun provides energy
2. Solar photovoltaic modules convert light energy into direct current (DC) power
3. Inverter converts DC power to alternating current (AC) power, this is used to power your home
4. The power generated by your solar electric system is metered, any unused power is fed back to the electricity grid earning you feed-in credits, paid to you by your electricity retailer, further reducing your cost of electricity

 

Government Rebates and Incentives

Renewable Energy Target (RET) Scheme

The Government's RET scheme is designed to ensure that 20 per cent of Australia's electricity comes from renewable sources by 2020. The RET increases the previous Mandatory Renewable Energy Target by over four times, from 9,500 gigawatt-hours to 45,000 gigawatt-hours in 2020. In ten years time the amount of electricity coming from sources like solar, wind and geothermal will be about equal to all of Australia's current household electricity use.

The new RET laws include new incentives to support households installing small-scale solar systems. ‘Solar Credits' are now available to households that install eligible small generation units by providing multiple RECs for each megawatt-hour of energy produced.

Small scale renewable energy systems under the RET scheme

The RET scheme's rules allow owners of small-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) systems to create at the time of installation RECs equivalent to the output of up to 15 years operation depending on the system type. This provides an upfront capital subsidy to households who may sell their RECs on the market. While system owners can create and trade RECs themselves, in practice owners generally transfer this right to their system provider in return for a discount on the system price or a cash payment.

Solar Credits

The expanded RET scheme includes the newly established ‘Solar Credits' mechanism to boost the support to households that install small-scale solar PV systems by multiplying the number of tradeable RECs able to be created for eligible installations.

Solar Credits are available for eligible systems installed on or after 9 June 2009. Solar credits apply to the first 1.5 kilowatts (kW) of capacity installed. Generation from capacity above 1.5kW will still be eligible for the standard 1:1 rate of RECs creation. Solar Credits apply from 9 June 2009 and will be phased out by 2015-16.

How much can you save?

A 1 kWp Solar Electricity system located in Sydney, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane or Canberra will generate 103 RECs	Receive $5,150+ point-of-sale discount
A 1.5 kWp Solar Electricity system located in Sydney, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane or Canberra will generate 155 RECs	Receive $7,750+ point-of-sale discount
+ Figures based on RECs price of $50. REC price subject to change.

Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility rules are prescribed in the RET scheme regulations, administered by the Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator (ORER) are summarised below. Further details of the rules are available on the ORER website.

• The system must be an eligible ‘small generation unit'; being a solar PV system of up to 100 kilowatts (kW) capacity;
• The system must be installed at an eligible premises. Examples include houses, townhouses, residential apartments and shops.
• The system must be a new and complete unit.
• There is to be no ‘double-dipping' in relation to the Solar Homes and Communities Plan, the Renewable Remote Power Generation Program (RRPGP), or the National Solar Schools Program (NSSP). That is, a premises receiving a grant or rebate under any of these programs is not entitled to Solar Credits.
• No more than one system at an eligible premises (address) is entitled to Solar Credits.
• Solar Credits may only be created once for a particular installation, irrespective of whether the certificates are created for a 1-year, 5-year or 15-year deeming period.
• The system must have been installed no more than 12 months prior to the date of application for Solar Credits.

For further information on RET Scheme and Solar Credits go to: Fact Sheet or FAQs

Feed-in Tariffs

In addition to the RET scheme, State Governments across Australia are introducing feed-in tariffs which have the potential to reduce your energy costs even further. The power generated by your solar electric system is metered, any unused power is fed back to the electricity grid earning you feed-in credits, paid to you by your electricity retailer, further reducing your cost of electricity.

The table below summarises the current feed-in tariff programs implemented across Australia.

State	Start Date	Tariff & Max System Size	Net / Gross	Program Duration
NSW	January 2010	60c / kWh up to 10kWp	Gross	7 years
QLD	Commenced in July 2008	44c / kWh up to 10kWp	Net	20 years
VIC	March 2009	60c / kWh up to 3.2kWp	Net	15 years
ACT	March 2009.  Further amendments expected July 2009.	50.05c/kWh  up to 10kWp and 40.04c/kWh up to 30kWp	Gross	20 years
SA	July 2009	44c / kWh up to 10kWp	Net	20 years
TAS	2009	20c / kWh	Net	tbc
NT	Incentive is available for 225 rooftop PV systems in Alice Springs.	45.76 c/kWh. Capped at $5 per day, then reverts to 23.11c / kWh	Net	tbc
WA	Under review

For more information on feed-in tariffs;

WA feed-in tariff 
Queensland feed-in tarif 
South Australian feed-in tariff
NSW feed-in tariff
Victoria feed-in tariff
ACT feed-in tariff

Green Loans

Green Loans is a new Australian Government initiative to help Australians tackle climate change. From July 2009 the Green Loans Program will assist Australian families to install solar and other energy efficient products. The Green Loans Program will provide:

• Householders access to a free, comprehensive Home Sustainability Assessment to assess ways to reduce their energy and water bills, increase the comfort of their home and help reduce damaging carbon pollution. This independent assessment will provide advice from the smallest behavior change to sustainable investments such as installing solar electric systems.
• Many households who take up a Home Sustainability Assessment may be interested in taking out a loan to undertake the home improvements suggested in the assessment report. To assist these households, the Australian Government will lower the cost of finance by providing a loan subsidy to participating financial institutions. This subsidy will cover the interest on borrowing of up to $10,000 for a period of up to four years.

For more information Green Loans

To arrange a site inspection and free quote please complete an enquiry form or call us on 1300 660 704.

NSW Solar Bonus Scheme

The NSW Government has announced a gross feed-in tariff scheme for small scale, grid-connected, solar photovoltaic panels.

A gross feed-in tariff provides payments for all the electricity produced by an eligible renewable energy system and are deigned to;

• encourage and support people who want to act on climate change by generating renewable energy locally
• build the State's green collar jobs sector, by helping solar technology compete with non-renewable energy sources
• expand the visibility of renewable energy technologies to help motivate the whole community respond to climate change Payback Period

Greater Return on Your Investment

The NSW Solar Bonus Scheme will now deliver the most generous payments across Australia to families in NSW who install solar systems.

Under the Scheme, commencing 1 January 2010, a household that installs a 1.5kWp system will be paid up to $1,496 per year for the next 7 years, a household who installs a 10kWp system will receive payments of up to $10,000 per year for the next 7 years, bringing the payback period on an investment in solar down to less than 5 years.

However, the Scheme will be reviewed in 2012, or when the installed capacity of renewable energy generators participating in the Scheme reaches 50 megawatts, whichever occurs first, meaning a review of the Scheme may lead to those who aren't participating in the Scheme missing out.

Contact us now and we'll design the right solar system for your home and provide you with a no obligation proposal and quotation. Complete an enquiry form or call us on 1300 660 704 to arrange an inspection.

Features of the Scheme

The key features of NSW Solar Bonus Scheme include:

• It will credit eligible customers with a 'gross' feed-in tariff rate of 60 cents per kilowatt hour for all the electricity that their eligible solar photovoltaic (PV) system generates subject to the transitional arrangements.
• Small electricity customers (those with an annual electricity consumption of up to 160 megawatt hours) are eligible to participate in the Scheme.
• Solar PV systems up to 10 kilowatts in size will be eligible for the Scheme.
• The tariff rate of 60 cents per kilowatt hour will be fixed for the life of the Scheme, meaning it will not vary with the time of the day or during the life of the Scheme.
• The Scheme will commence on 1 January 2010 (please see Question and Answer on transitional arrangements) and will operate for 7 years.
• The Scheme will be reviewed in 2012, or when the installed capacity of renewable energy generators participating in the Scheme reaches 50 megawatts, whichever occurs first.

More information is available in the Solar Bonus Scheme Questions and Answers.

Transitional Arrangements

The NSW Government has recently announced new details for the design of the Solar Bonus Scheme set to commence on 1 January 2010.

The legislation provides for transitional arrangements to implement the Solar Bonus Scheme so that electricity network businesses, notably Energy Australia and Country Energy (and Integral Energy for a small number of customers), can transition from "net" to "gross" metering. This means that over the first six months of the Scheme, certain customers may receive different benefits under the Scheme.

Participation in the Scheme

To receive the Scheme's gross tariff, consumers need to have metering that can measure the gross or total amount of electricity generated by their renewable energy generator, referred to as 'gross metering'.

Currently consumers in NSW's three electricity network areas - Country Energy, Energy Australia and Integral Energy - have different arrangements for electricity metering. The Solar Bonus Scheme's transitional arrangements have been developed to allow for certain customers who have net metering connected to their solar photovoltaic (PV) system to receive the Scheme's tariff as a 'net' tariff until the transitional day which is currently set at 1 July 2010.

This means that from 1 January 2010 to 30 June 2010 certain customers with net metering will receive the Scheme's credit on the net electricity they export to the national electricity grid. To continue to receive the credit from 1 July 2010, these customers will need to transition to gross metering.

For details of your electricity network area arrangements please see below;

• Integral Energy - Generally consumers with small-scale renewable energy generators in Integral Energy's area already have gross metering in place and should be able to participate in the scheme. For further details please visit Integral Energy.

• Energy Australia - From 1 January to 30 June 2010, existing Energy Australia solar customers will receive a credit of 60 cents per kWh only for the electricity they export to the grid, because they are already connected to the electricity grid with a NET metering configuration. From 1 July 2010, customers who have a complying generator and have changed to a GROSS metering configuration will receive 60 cents per kWh on their GROSS or total electricity generation. In order to participate in the Solar Bonus Scheme an additional meter will be required for the GROSS metering configuration. Energy Australia will supply this meter at no additional cost, however there will be an installation cost for the meter conversion work. Energy Australia has advised they hope to make GROSS meters available by March 2010 and will advise customers early in 2010 about the steps they will need to take to arrange for their metering connection to be changed to a GROSS configuration before 1 July 2010. For further details please visit Energy Australia.

• Country Energy - from 1 January 2010 to 30 June 2010, Country Energy net metered customers within its electricity network will receive 60 cents per kilowatt hour only for excess renewable energy that is fed into the electricity grid after household or small business needs are met. Country Energy will provide eligible existing net metered customers - with an installed capacity of less than 10 kilowatts - with a new gross meter at no additional charge. Installation of the gross meter can be arranged through any appropriately qualified Accredited Service Provider - charges for the installation of the gross meter are the customer's responsibility. Country Energy will write to existing net metering customers, those with an approved application and customers who have lodged, but yet to be approved for connection from 24 December 2009 to advise them of the introduction of the Scheme and of transitional arrangements. For further details please visit Country Energy.

Payment of the Solar Bonus Credit

All electricity retailers are required to provide eligible customers with either a Solar Bonus Scheme credit on their electricity bill or a cash payment representing this amount. How a customer receives their Solar Bonus Scheme benefit is at the discretion of the retailer. From 1 July 2010 onwards a bill issued to an eligible small retail customer is required to include the amount of electricity supplied to the network during the billing period and the amount to be credited for that electricity.

GROSS Metering vs NET Metering

In simple terms, a GROSS metering configuration for solar power is set up in such a way that it measures all the electricity consumed in the household (i.e. imported from the electricity grid) and all the electricity generated by the solar power system and fed back in (or exported) to the electricity grid. Buy-back credits are applied to the export amounts the meter measures (i.e. everything generated by your system) and consumption (or imported) electricity is billed normally.

A NET import/export metering configuration is also often referred to as "net metering" and is setup in such a way that any electricity generated by the solar power system is always used on the premises first. Electricity generated by the solar power system is only fed back into (or exported to) the electricity grid when the amount generated is more than is being used on the premises. This type of metering configuration separately measures the amount of electricity imported from the grid and exported to the grid and it can be implemented in a number of ways.

Who is already enjoying the benefits of solar?

Many Australian families have partnered with Solgen Energy and are enjoying the benefits of solar electricity. Here are some of our installations and what our clients have to say about us;

“The Solgen Energy team really understood what we were after, they worked with our architects and builder to design our new solar electric system.”
Mrs Ronson, Mosman, NSW

"Solgen Energy gave us great advice with no hard sell, they made everything so easy". Mrs Ireland, Bradbury, NSW

"The solar panels were such good quality, they'll be up there for the next 40 years! I'd recommend Solgen Energy to anyone". Mrs Bongarzoni, Seaforth, NSW

"Solgen Energy made accessing the Government grants easy, the team were very helpful and friendly". Mr Wigington, Sinnamon Park, QLD

More information

The recent introduction of the Solar Credits Scheme now gives everyone an incentive to install solar at home! Solgen Energy provides solar energy solutions of outstanding quality and value. We’ll design and install the right solar solution for home.

To learn more about our services please complete our enquiry form or
call 1300 660 704.

For further information on the Solar Credit Scheme and how you can save go to: Fact Sheet

For further information on the NSW Solar Bonus Scheme go to: Solar Bonus Scheme Questions and Answers