Rooftop solar powers more Australian houses than coal

Rooftop solar systems provided 14% of Australia’s electricity needs during the summer. 

Rooftop solar systems provided 14% of Australia’s electricity, which is higher than other energy sources, the Clean Energy Council reported.

“There is no doubt with inflation and cost of living pressures, people are turning to rooftop solar in record numbers,” Clean Energy Council Chief Executive Kane Thornton said.

“Thousands of Australians are switching to rooftop solar and seeing their benefits to their hip pockets and the environment. In fact, payback periods for rooftop solar are now at near record-low levels, at 3.4 years for a 7 kW system.”

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The total output for rooftop solar for the summer was 8,046 gigawatt-hours, up by 19.5% year-on-year. 

Energy bills have also risen by 15%-20% since mid-2022, leading to a surge in small-scale solar installations. 

“We’re seeing a fundamental shift; consumers are becoming energy generators, making their own clean energy, reducing their bills and taking on the electricity companies,” Thornton said.

“Even more clean, low-cost generation was produced and used by households themselves, taking pressure off our strained system,” he said.