Aldi is shaking up the home solar market with a new, Melbourne-only offering.
The multi-national, ultra-cheap retailer is now marketing a solar and battery package that includes 6kW of solar panels, a 5kW hybrid inverter and a 5.1kWh lithium ion phosphate (LiFePO4) battery, all for the princely sum of $7,999 – inclusive of installation.
For comparison, SolarCalculator estimates that the average 6.6kW solar system with battery costs between $15,000 at the cheaper end to $18,000.
The bargain offer from a supermarket chain is not completely from left field – other mainstream retailers have dipped their toes into the market, including Ikea and Bunnings.
Ikea Australia has partnered with Solargain to offer a home solar system range called SOLSTRÅLE which includes panels, inverter and installation for the competitive price of $4,490, while Bunnings offers solar panels and accessories like EV chargers and home batteries – all separately, though.
But the offer of a bundled solar and battery package hints at a couple of emerging trends.
First, that pairing storage with rooftop panels is well on the way to becoming the norm, and second, that we’re seeing what Solar Quotes’ founder Finn Peacock describes as the “‘Aldification of Solar’ – the race by giant retailers to slap a discount tag on what used to be a specialist service.”
The Aldi solar and battery package is being offered through a partnership between Aldi and Tempo Group, which already supplies the supermarket chain with its low-cost TVs, consumer electronics and appliances.
In 2023 Tempo Group announced it would bring new Solar PV modules from Altius and Sphere to the market, with SolarQuotes noting that Altius is a little-known brand in Australia that uses rebranded Chinese modules at a relatively low 380 watts of peak power output (the average panel nowadays is well over 400W).
But is it too good to be true?
Peacock has reviewed the panels, saying they offer competitive prices but have a questionable temperature coefficient, a less-than-clear warranty, and no established track record in the country.
“If you do choose the budget option, please do your homework on the contracting entity checking for any unresolved 1-star reviews online. If the big box retailer won’t divulge the installer’s details on the quote – I reckon that’s a big red flag,” Peacock says.
SolarQuotes has also raised concerns over the quality of the hardware and install, with their in-house installer Anthony Bennett investigating the installation guide offered for the inverter.
SolarCalculator, for its part, expressly recommens against investing in cheap 6.6kW systems.
Warwick Johnston, founder of consultancy SunWiz and Board Director at the Clean Energy Council (CEC), gave One Step his two cents on the package.
“It’s hard to see what the original equipment manufacturer is from the datasheets,” Johnston said. “My concern is that Aldi has a reputation for its middle-aisle discount stock that you won’t find there next week, so how will they support the products which have a 25-year lifespan, and which, if they do fail, can fail badly.
“I’d also say that this isn’t the first big chain to bring solar into the mix,” he added. “We’ve had IKEA have a go at this before, and you can now buy EV chargers at Bunnings, so this is going to become more commonplace, but it’s very hard to say the quality of those products, and Aldi is not synonymous with quality.
“But it’s a cracking price and that might just get a lot more people into solar, and the world needs as much solar power as we possibly can get, though of course we do want to ensure that it is long lived and supports the ongoing expansion of a healthy, sustainable industry.”
