❓ Mr. Baker asks about the WA residential battery scheme rollout and its impact on cost-of-living. Ms. Sanderson details the scheme's progress, funding, application numbers, and grid stabilization benefits, emphasizing cost-of-living relief, especially for low-to-middle income families.
AnsweredQoN 380Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Energy—Residential
battery scheme380.Mr Geoff Bakerto
theMinister for Energy and Decarbonisation:I refer to the Cook
Labor government's commitment to delivering cleaner, more reliable and more
affordable energy in Western Australia.(1) Can the minister provide an update on the
rollout of the WA residential battery scheme?(2) Can the minister explain how the scheme is effecting
real cost-of-living relief for Western Australian households?
battery scheme380.Mr Geoff Bakerto
theMinister for Energy and Decarbonisation:I refer to the Cook
Labor government's commitment to delivering cleaner, more reliable and more
affordable energy in Western Australia.(1) Can the minister provide an update on the
rollout of the WA residential battery scheme?(2) Can the minister explain how the scheme is effecting
real cost-of-living relief for Western Australian households?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
21 August 2025
Response time
0 days
Ms Amber-Jade Sanderson replied:(1)–(2) I thank the member for South Perth
for the question. I know that this program is very popular in his electorate of
South Perth. As we know, the residential battery scheme was launched on 1 July.
It is a Western Australian and Commonwealth government scheme. It is a $337 million
investment to deliver the most generous battery subsidies in the nation. It
also includes a $10,000 loan for households with combined incomes of $210,000
and below, which is the first time we will see those households able to access
what has been, to date, inaccessible technology that will genuinely reduce
their household bills. In less than two months we have seen a huge influx of
applications to embrace the clean energy future, and today we can announce that
we have received 8,800 applications from households across WA, with over 5,500
of those already on their way to installation.With WA's significant uptake of
rooftop solar, it is no surprise that it has been well embraced, and we are
well on track to reach 20,000 applications by the end of the year. That would mean
that our entire allocation would have been exhausted by the end of the year and
it would have been first in, best dressed and sorry for those who missed out. However,
partnering with the Albanese government means that we have been able to extend
those to 100,000 households for the year. Instead of running out at the end of
the year, we are establishing an industry for the future. We are setting up
this industry for the future and enabling 100,000 households to get about one
gigawatt of capacity across the system. That is a massive increase in capacity
and there will be a huge stabilisation of the grid as well. It will enable even
more solar to be put into our households. The opportunity that virtual power
plants play is really significant for the grid and enables people to control
their own energy use and supply. It will enable us to synchronise that demand
and those batteries at times of peak demand, which means we will be able to
have more flexibility around the grid and enable the stabilisation of the grid
rather than all the solar panels pushing energy into our grid during the day when
no-one is using it and everyone coming home and drawing down on the grid at
peak. That creates destabilisation.This is a really important
investment. It is a national investment from the Commonwealth partnering with
Western Australia. Really importantly, this will mean structural relief for
budgets. This will provide meaningful structural cost-of-living relief for all
families who access it but, in particular low-income and middle-income
families.
Energy—Residential
battery scheme
for the question. I know that this program is very popular in his electorate of
South Perth. As we know, the residential battery scheme was launched on 1 July.
It is a Western Australian and Commonwealth government scheme. It is a $337 million
investment to deliver the most generous battery subsidies in the nation. It
also includes a $10,000 loan for households with combined incomes of $210,000
and below, which is the first time we will see those households able to access
what has been, to date, inaccessible technology that will genuinely reduce
their household bills. In less than two months we have seen a huge influx of
applications to embrace the clean energy future, and today we can announce that
we have received 8,800 applications from households across WA, with over 5,500
of those already on their way to installation.With WA's significant uptake of
rooftop solar, it is no surprise that it has been well embraced, and we are
well on track to reach 20,000 applications by the end of the year. That would mean
that our entire allocation would have been exhausted by the end of the year and
it would have been first in, best dressed and sorry for those who missed out. However,
partnering with the Albanese government means that we have been able to extend
those to 100,000 households for the year. Instead of running out at the end of
the year, we are establishing an industry for the future. We are setting up
this industry for the future and enabling 100,000 households to get about one
gigawatt of capacity across the system. That is a massive increase in capacity
and there will be a huge stabilisation of the grid as well. It will enable even
more solar to be put into our households. The opportunity that virtual power
plants play is really significant for the grid and enables people to control
their own energy use and supply. It will enable us to synchronise that demand
and those batteries at times of peak demand, which means we will be able to
have more flexibility around the grid and enable the stabilisation of the grid
rather than all the solar panels pushing energy into our grid during the day when
no-one is using it and everyone coming home and drawing down on the grid at
peak. That creates destabilisation.This is a really important
investment. It is a national investment from the Commonwealth partnering with
Western Australia. Really importantly, this will mean structural relief for
budgets. This will provide meaningful structural cost-of-living relief for all
families who access it but, in particular low-income and middle-income
families.
Energy—Residential
battery scheme
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