Nearly all solar households want to add a battery, but costs still a concern

Just one-fifth of Australian solar homes have battery storage, a new survey has found, but a massive 84 per cent of solar homes without a battery are looking to add one to the mix in the near future.

The Solar Citizens survey of 1,700 households nationwide finds that while the cost of a home battery is still considered a major barrier to uptake, a “significant 84 per cent” of rooftop solar owners are considering buying one in the next three years.

The apparent increase in interest in home battery storage comes as households on Australia’s east coast start to see soaring wholesale energy market prices flow through to higher electricity and gas bills.

The survey numbers gel with recent reports from industry of a dramatic lift in customer interest in installing both solar and battery storage at the same time, as a sort of “insurance policy” against a grid supply still tethered to costly fossil fuels.

According to our industry sources, Australian households investing in batteries now are less concerned with the upfront cost, and more concerned about having a buffer against high bills and possibly also unreliable supply.

“With the energy chaos of the past few months, it’s no surprise that households are looking for the savings and security offered by storage in their homes,” says Solar Citizens deputy director Stephanie Gray.

But the survey suggests high costs are still a decent turn-off for a big chunk of solar households, with nearly half of respondents saying they would need a decent subsidy – somewhere between $3,000 – $6,000 – to get them over the line.

Gray says the introduction of a federal energy storage target – as is being pushed by some in the industry as an alternative to the controversial so-called “capacity mechanism” – might help drive down costs and drive up uptake.

“We’d like to see the federal government implement a Renewable Energy Storage Target to help more households utilise their cheap solar energy around the clock. This would be good news for the grid and help bring down prices for everyone,” Gray said on Monday.

“Big coal and gas companies are cashing in on this energy crisis at the expense of consumers, and it’s time for our new federal government to act on their mandate to roll out affordable clean energy.

“It’s a no brainer we should be helping everyday Australians tap into our abundant cheap sunshine with batteries and electric appliances to maximise the benefits.”

What the survey says…

– 85% of respondents have solar.

– 42% of solar owners have saved 70% or more (or are in credit) on annual electricity costs, and 61% have saved 51% or more.

– 84% of solar owners without a battery are interested in buying one in the next three years, where 20% of solar owners already have one.

– When asked how much a government subsidy would need to be for non-battery owners to purchase a battery:

– 26% said $3-4,000 or more
– 20% said $5-6,000 or more
– 10% said the entire cost
– (24% unsure, around 7% each said $1-2,000, or above $7,000).