Big News: 3 Free Hours of Power in Australia

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In a surprising move, the Australian government is advocating giving the public access to free electricity for three hours a day starting next July. The Solar Sharer energy reform will be available in South East Queensland, South Australia, and New South Wales. Other states will join in 2027. The reform is expected to reduce electricity bills by AU$800 per year for those who plan wisely. Of course, electricity retailers are screaming about loss of profits.

Australia has the highest per capita takeup of rooftop solar, plus many solar farms. So much solar is entering the grid in the middle of the day that the grid has to curtail it. The answer, of course, is more batteries, but in the meantime, the electricity generated is being wasted. Why not give it away?

This is what it looked like at 9:00 am today (the sun got out of bed at 5:00 am):

Of course, like PHEV cars, you have to plug in. The highest users of electricity in the home are appliances that heat and cool. According to my supplier, AGL, electric hot water has the highest consumption, at 5 kWh; followed by centralised air conditioning at 4 kWh; then clothes dryers at 3.5 kWh; an electric oven at 3.5 kWh; and the washing machine at 0.55 kWh. Leaving the TV on uses only 0.15 kWh and an LED lightbulb uses only 0.01 kWh.

AGL hastens to add: “Please note that these are representative energy consumption figures, calculated for average appliances of this type and are provided for illustrative purposes only. Your actual energy use may vary depending on the brand, type and age of your appliance.” (Per email.)

Maximum benefit will accrue to those who are able and/or willing to change their behaviours. However, even those who do not change their behaviours will still receive some bill relief. This will be a boon to those who live in buildings that do not have solar, like apartment blocks and for renters who cannot fit solar to their roofs.

For me, we have converted all the appliances we can to electric, and for greater health benefits we have shifted our main meal, which involves cooking on our electric stove, to the middle of the day. We are retired and so we have that latitude.

What about those wage slaves who work during the day? Most modern appliances come with timers. The biggest energy thief — your hot water system — can easily be set to run in the middle of the day and provide hot water for 24 hours. Washing machines and dryers could run during the free power zone. Many Australians are installing home batteries — this would be the time to fill them if they don’t have solar. Keep the power for peak hour. Midday is the new “off peak.”

This might even encourage people to bite the bullet on buying an electric car. Free fuel. Not petrol or diesel, but electrons. This is not just good for a consumer saving thousands a year on petrol costs, but also good for the country, as Australia imports all of its fuel. If you are at home, just plug in. If you are at work, chat to the boss — he doesn’t have to pay for power for three hours, so there shouldn’t be too many objections.

Of course, the opposition conservative parties are trying to say that this will put up power prices. I don’t see how. If you do, please share your thoughts in the comments. And as I mentioned, the power providers are worried that it will cut into their profits. I am sure they will find a way to squeeze more money out of the consumer. How about that connection fee, eh? At the moment, it is the highest part of my monthly bill.

How would you use your three free hours of electricity? What would you have to change in order to get maximum benefit? It is going to be fascinating to see how the Australian public takes up this offer. For those running on gas, can I say to you: don’t throw out working appliances, but as something breaks down, replace it with electric. This applies to a car purchase also.

Over the past ten years, as something has broken down, we have done this. Lawnmower won’t work — replace with electric. Hot water system springs a leak — replace with electric. Gas stove goes rusty and fails — replace with electric. We did this over concern for the climate. Today, there is a more powerful driving force — saving money!

“Today’s announcement is a big win for consumers across the energy system, especially for renters and apartments who often miss out on savings from having their own solar panels,” Rewiring Australia CEO Francis Vierboom comments.

“In the middle of the day, our grid is humming with cheap solar. The underlying price of that electricity is often zero or negative. This Solar Sharer reform means energy retailers will have to pass on those ultra-low prices to consumers for at least three hours.

“That’s enough time to heat up a hot water tank, blast the air conditioner to cool a home on a hot day, run a pool pump, or charge an EV, and each one of those could mean hundreds of dollars of savings per year.”

In turn, this should mean that the grid is cheaper to maintain by reducing the need for upgrades to cope with the evening peak. Smart meters are required to access the Solar Sharer program. It is expected that all Australian homes will have these fitted by 2030. Rewiring Australia commends the federal government’s plan that requires retailers to include three free hours of electricity in the middle of the day in the energy plans they offer to consumers.

Some questions will need to be considered. “Will electricity retailers put up the connection fee to cover any lost profits?” Currently, I pay about AU$40 a month just to be connected to the grid, irrespective of how much power I use. Will Australians slow in their plans to install home solar if there is free electricity from the grid?

It looks like the canary is singing again. First we had the Tesla Big Battery (Hornsdale Power Reserve) experiment in South Australia. This has been a resounding success and is now emulated worldwide. We are seeing more and more Chinese cars on our roads. Another success story. Next year, we will see how well the free power — Solar Sharer — reform is implemented. We will no doubt encounter those pernickety unknown unknowns. But I am looking forward to another Aussie gold medal on this one.

It is now 12 noon and this is the state of electricity production at the time the free electricity would be available.

It is worth interacting with the widget.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch: In my house, we already cook “dinner” in the middle of the day, then relax in the cool of air conditioning for a couple of hours before we pick up the grandkids from school. These three hours of free power correspond to our highest power use. My electricity bill credit is just going to get bigger. In winter, when my solar is not producing enough power to charge the car, I will charge my Tesla at this time! What about you, how will you maximise this gift from the government, and the sun?