AGL offers “all-in-one” solar and battery bundle as it seeks to boost virtual power plant

AGL Energy is hoping to boost participation in its solar and storage virtual power plant with the offer of a discounted, zero up-front rooftop PV and battery package, backed by low-interest finance from humm group.

AGL on Thursday launched the “all-in-one solar battery bundle,” which it has pitched to its customer base as a “simple and easy” way to invest in roughly $15,000 worth of bill (and emissions) slashing technology, and pay it off for around $250 a month.

The offer includes a 6.6kW JA Solar PV system, an SMA Sunny Boy 5.0kVA inverter and the choice between either a Tesla Powerwall battery (below) or an LG Chem RESU10H + SolarEdge StorEdge Inverter (above).

To further sweeten the deal, AGL will also offer a $1,000 discount to customers who opt in to the gen-tailer’s virtual power plant for a minimum period of five years.

For the Powerwall package, customers can either apply for the humm finance offer to pay $257 a month, or pay $14,613 outright. The LG Chem bundle is slightly more expensive, at either $259 a month or $14,758 outright. Interest sits at 1.99% for both offers.

The new “bundle” comes just a couple of months after AGL extended the geographical reach of its home solar and battery VPP with the launch of battery sales and installations for residential customers in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.

AGL first tentatively extended its VPP program to Victoria, NSW and Queensland in June of last year, but only for customers who already had a battery, following the success of its first network of residential solar batteries, which was established in Adelaide in 2016.

But the new offer is not entirely about growing the virtual power plant. For AGL it’s also a handy way to bolster retail customer loyalty, while at the same time offering customers more “energy independence.”

“Day or night, a solar battery will be there to help power your home, storing the excess solar generated during the day to help power your home at night and in turn reducing your bills and reliance on the grid,” said AGL’s general manager of decentralised energy resources, Dominique Van Den Berg.

“Our new bundle and the financing option provide our customers with more flexibility and choice while empowering them to be part of the transition to a cleaner energy future.

“AGL has been clear that in order to meet our commitments and 2050 target of net zero emissions in our Climate Statement we need to be delivering innovative and sustainable products like this for our customers.

“We have already seen through the expansion of our VPP and our certified carbon neutral products that our customers are just as committed to creating a more sustainable future and this is yet another way we are giving our customers more choice about how their energy is generated.

“Making these bundles affordable is an important step in empowering our customers and modernising Australia’s energy supply as it transitions to a low emissions future,” Van Den Berg said.