Solar Savers Adelaide: Solar PVs for Low-Income Households
About this good practice
Southern Australia is experiencing increases in frequency/intensity of heat waves, and energy prices, meaning elderly, vulnerable & low-income communities are forced to consider affordability of energy costs of air conditioning, as well as significant health impacts if unable to maintain healthy indoor temperatures.
Barriers to installation of solar PV systems include access to upfront capital to purchase; lack of clarity and trust in the solar market; and split incentive between landlords and tenants.
Low-income households eligible (owner-occupied and rental, using existing income-tested measures) are given a separate rate that is charged to the land, and is paid off by participating property owners in quarterly instalments over a 10 year period. The charge avoids households paying an up-front cost for solar and allows Council to recover the cost for supply and installation over a longer time frame. The principle is that households are forecasted to save more on electricity bills than they will pay for the solar panels each year over the 10 year period.
The Council provided €650 upfront rebate on the total cost of the solar PV energy system as part of the City of Adelaide's Sustainability Incentive Scheme. It also bore the administrative and program costs, as well as the costs of the Solar Analytics energy monitoring system. An interest rate of 3.55% was applied to the total cost of the system in order to cover Council’s costs of financing the system over 10 years
Expert opinion
Similar in context to the Cyprus support scheme for PV in low-income homes (https://www.interregeurope.eu/policylearning/good-practices/item/5052/subsidising-investment-for-renewable-energy-and-energy-saving-measures-in-vulnerable-homes-in-cyprus/ ), this good practice from Australia has on top the benefit of allowing the payback of the non-subsidised part of the CAPEX of new PV systems over a 10-year period in quarterly payments made by the low-income housholds which they can afford due to the savings compared to their electricity bill before the new PV systems were installed. This is a very plausible financing model in line with the capabilities of the target group. It is also financially sustainable funding from the municipality as it comes as a long-term loan that is eventually being repaid.
Resources needed
Government assured contractor, awarded contract after public tender process. SSV is government funded and implemented by a partnership between not-for-profits and local councils.
· Solar PV manufacturer · Upfront costs to Council for installation/equipment · Solar Analytics monitoring system
Evidence of success
40 eligible households have had Solar PV systems installed in 2016, households could save up to 323 €/year on energy bills. Low-income groups don’t pay upfront for clean, renewable solar PVs, and don’t need to choose between a cool, comfortable home and other necessities. Solar capacity in Adelaide increased by 87kW. In 2017/18, applications more than doubled.
Potential for learning or transfer
Being applied in other Australian regions: Solar Savers Darebin and Solar Savers Victoria (SSV) are also being rolled out so is applicable to other contexts, in sun-rich regions. The programme is economically sustainable as the money is repaid to the government.
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Adelaide City Council