Why We Need Community Batteries
Solar energy has one problem that has plagued it since its beginning: how do you store the power created during sunny periods to be used later on?
The answer is, of course, power storage batteries. But these are anything but cheap, with small to medium-sized solar batteries coming in at around the $6000-$9000 range. While the cost of rooftop solar has dropped significantly over the last decade, battery storage hasn’t followed at the same pace.
This has left many households in the frustrating position of having the ability to generate their own electricity, but being unable to effectively store it. So when the sun goes down or the clouds roll in, these homes are still relying on the grid and paying retail rates for their power.
This gap between generation and storage has limited the full potential of home solar. And for many Australians, it’s simply not financially viable to install a $10,000 battery on top of an existing solar system. For every extra dollar spent, these households are waiting longer and longer for their solar installation to become profitable.
Community batteries aim to change that. By pooling the cost of a larger, shared battery across multiple households, this initiative spreads both the financial burden and the benefits, making solar a more viable solution for everyone.
What Community Batteries Don't Do
To be clear, community batteries absolutely do have their place, and will undoubtedly be a net positive for Australian energy infrastructure as a whole.
They’re a clever way to stretch the benefits of solar further across the suburbs, especially for households that either can’t afford a private battery or don’t have the space for one. By soaking up excess solar during the day and feeding it back into the grid at night, they can help reduce household electricity bills, cut emissions, and take pressure off the local network during peak times.
But there’s a ceiling to what these batteries can offer.
For starters, households don’t have control over how or when the stored energy is used. The system operates at a community level, which means you’re sharing capacity with everyone else connected to it. You can’t store your own solar output for personal use — you’re relying on what’s available.
But one of the biggest issues is that these batteries are only aimed at supporting solar for residential housing. There’s no mention at all of how this might reduce the electricity burden for businesses, who arguably stand to gain the most from an initiative like this.
Why Businesses Need More
Although community batteries might be a great initiative for households, it’s looking like businesses will be left out in the cold once again. Commercial energy use is higher, more complex, and more constant than the average family home.
As far as we can tell, there are currently no plans to extend these programs to roll out support for commercial users as well, meaning most of the benefits of this initiative will likely bypass the business community entirely.
A Smarter Solution for Australian SMEs
So, for the small to medium enterprises of Australia, the community batteries initiative might not be the shining beacon of electricity price relief that you were hoping for—but that doesn’t mean there aren’t other avenues available to you.
If your organisation is serious about reducing energy costs and improving reliability, you need solutions that are scalable, controllable, and able to be continually adjusted to suit you as times change. Here are three such solutions.
- The first is solar for small businesses. In order to benefit from solar battery storage, you must first install solar power. Business solar remains a brilliant, cost-effective, and reliable method of generating electricity and reducing your grid reliance.
- The next is solar battery systems. While businesses will likely miss out on the benefits of the community battery initiative, there is good news on the horizon. The Labor government has said that, if re-elected, they will fund a 30% battery subsidy for small to medium enterprises, giving businesses the chance to benefit from their own solar power storage at a significantly reduced cost.
- The third method — and one no business should overlook — is the savings potential of a tailored business energy procurement strategy. Not every business can afford to install solar plus batteries right away, but that doesn’t mean you can’t start saving right away. Through smart energy procurement, you can access better rates, secure competitive contracts, and gain clarity around your energy usage simply through expert guidance from the team at Choice Energy.
We negotiate directly with energy retailers on your behalf, helping you find a deal that suits your operation — not simply the default offer. This really is one of the quickest and most effective ways to reduce your energy costs.
Australia is in the midst of an exciting rollout of many different renewable energy initiatives, of which the community batteries initiative is undoubtedly one. But for businesses, it’s not the whole answer.
Our advice remains the same, if you want to cut your electricity costs, don’t wait around for a miracle initiative to solve it for you. Take control of your energy future with a free energy assessment from Choice Energy today.
