Scramble for solar rebates sparks boom-bust cycle

THE Victorian Government’s $1.3 billion rooftop solar rebate scheme is feeding a “race to the bottom” and destroying good businesses, industry leaders say.

Solar panel installers are warning they will have to lay off staff or close because the latest round of rebates for households was exhausted on the same day they opened.

Applications opened yesterday morning for the August rebates, worth $2225 each for households earning up to $180,000 a year, and in 105 minutes were all gone.

The Clean Energy Council said government programs shouldn’t be like “trying to buy concert tickets”, and called for urgent intervention by Premier Daniel Andrews.

The Government introduced monthly caps on rebates to “give consumers and industry certainty”. But customers are delaying orders until they can get the discount, leaving many installers without work.

National Electrical and Communications Association Victoria executive director Pawel Podolski said the “situation can’t go on”.

“We are seeing a race to the bottom, with many of the best and most experienced electrical contractors abandoning the solar industry,” he said.

“As well as being a travesty for these hardworking small businesses, the loss of talent and experience means standards will fall and the public’s safety could well be at risk.”

Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien said a policy with decent intentions was damaging a sector it was supposed to assist, but Solar Homes Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said the Government was “working with the sector to help them adapt”.

“The monthly rebate was designed in consultation with industry to provide certainty and ensure the program is rolled out safely over the next 10 years,” she said.

Clean Energy Council distributed energy director Darren Gladman praised the intention of the program but said “the way it is being rolled out is turning into a worst-case scenario for the state’s solar industry”.

“Solar Homes has created a devastating boom-bust which is hitting many small solar businesses hard,” he said.

“Because the majority of Victorians are able to access the program, people are holding off installing solar altogether until they can claim the rebates.

“It means the state’s solar industry is being turned on and off like a tap — and for the whole of August the tap was only on for a couple of hours.”

Applications for rooftop solar rebates open again on September 1.