Solar Choice

From the category archives:

Solar system sizes

Commercial Solar PV Price Index for June 2018

June 6, 2018

Changes in the composition of Solar Choice’s commercial solar installer network, combined with price updates from several companies have resulted in a slight upwards shift in average dollar per watt ($/W) prices for commercial solar systems – up about 3c/W from May 2018 to $1.19/W. Commercial solar system prices (10kW-100kW) All prices in the tables […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – June 2018

June 6, 2018

Average residential solar system prices have dipped down to $1.32 per watt ($/W) this month on the back of several factors, including changes to the composition of the Solar Choice installer network and updated pricing from installers that we work with. While not a historic low (we’ve seen $1.30/W in December 2017), it is the […]

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Solar Choice brokers 15kW solar system for Dovecare Medical Centre

May 30, 2018

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Solar Choice Commercial has brokered a 15kW solar system for Dovecare Medical Centre in Doveton, Victoria. The project is one of a number of medical centres that Solar Choice has assisted in making an informed decision about going solar. Dovecare’s owner approached Solar Choice in early 2017 seeking a solar system to help combat the […]

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Can you go off the grid with a 10kW solar system plus battery storage?

May 21, 2018

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We previously wrote an article about the feasibility of an Australian home going off-grid with a 3kW solar system – quite a small system size for such an ambitious endeavour. In this article, we’ll look at the case for going off-grid with a 10kW solar system – the unofficial upper limit for residential solar system […]

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Commercial Solar PV Price Index for May 2018

May 3, 2018

Commercial solar system prices continue their (very) gradual decline, according to pricing data from Solar Choice’s network of installers. The average indexed price continues to sit at around $1.16/W – down from about $1.23/W a year ago. Commercial solar system prices (10kW-100kW) All prices in the tables below include incentives available through the federal Renewable […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – May 2018

May 3, 2018

Average residential solar system prices continue to sit at about $1.35 per watt ($/W) for the second month in a row, despite a number of pricing updates from installers in the network across the country. A basic 5kW solar system – one of the most popular sizes – costs just under $5,700 on average, while ‘premium’ and […]

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Commercial Solar PV Price Index for April 2018

April 23, 2018

Average commercial solar system prices continue to sit at about $1.17/W for the second month in a row, according to data from the Solar Choice installer network database. 100kW and 70kW system prices come in at around $1.10/W nationally, while 10kW & 30kW are between $1.20-$1.30/W. Commercial solar system prices (10kW-100kW) All prices in the […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – April 2018

April 12, 2018

Average solar system prices again fell slightly between March and April, down to about $1.35 per watt, the lowest we’ve seen since the beginning of the year, but not as low as the record of $1.30/W set in December of 2017. For April 2018, 5kW systems are coming in at about $5,700 out-of-pocket on average for […]

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15kW solar systems: A great size for homes & businesses (if you can fit one on your roof)

March 20, 2018

15kW solar systems are a great system size for homes with high levels of energy consumption or businesses with small to middling energy needs – provided that they have sufficient roof space to install one. This article takes you through (almost) everything you might want to know about 15kW solar systems, including how much space […]

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Commercial Solar PV Price Index for March 2018

March 19, 2018

Average prices for commercial-scale solar systems continue to hang around $1.17 per watt, down from about $1.21/W this time last year, and down from about $1.30/W in 2016. 100kW systems are averaging about $1.10/W, while 10kW systems come in at around $1.28/W. Commercial solar system prices (10kW-100kW) All prices in the tables below include incentives […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – March 2018

March 14, 2018

Average solar system prices dipped slightly between February and March 2018 – coming in at about $1.38 per watt as opposed to $1.40/W last month – according to the most recent data from Solar Choice’s installer network database. While average prices decreased for most capital cities, Sydney and Canberra saw slight increases, due in part to changes […]

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Introducing our Commercial Solar System Payback Calculator

February 28, 2018

Commercial energy flows

Solar Choice has been managing tenders for commercial solar projects since 2010, during which time our engineering team has composed thousands of free Indicative Business Cases for commercial clients. On the back of this accumulated knowledge, we have decided to release a ‘lite’ version of our business case analysis engine to the world with our […]

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7kW solar systems: Prices, output & return on investment

February 28, 2018

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7kW solar systems, once relatively uncommon, have grown in popularity in Australia as the average solar system size has increased. A 7kW solar system could be the perfect match for an ordinary household with higher-than-average electricity consumption, or for a small business with accordingly small electricity needs. Back when Australia’s solar industry began booming around […]

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Battery Storage Price Index – February 2018

February 26, 2018

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This month we’ve changed up the style of the graphs that we use for our ‘Are We There Yet?’ Meter, and altered them to focus only on the ‘low’ end of the price spectrum. We’ve done this mainly for clarity’s sake but also because average payback periods for batteries are still very long for system […]

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Payback periods for commercial-scale solar PV systems: State by state

February 20, 2018

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There has never been a better time for Australian businesses to invest in commercial solar power. Last year Solar Choice analysed electricity bills & meter data to generate free indicative solar business cases for nearly 300 businesses, ranging from schools to farms to shopping centres to car dealerships to strata units to doctors’ surgeries (to […]

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100kW solar PV systems: Compare prices and installer options

February 20, 2018

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100kW solar systems are among the most popular commercial solar system sizes in Australia, as this size is the cutoff point for up-front incentives through the federal government (larger systems also receive a benefit, but it is ongoing). This article provides an overview of most of the key points that businesses need to know if […]

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Commercial Solar PV Price Index for February 2018

February 19, 2018

Average commercial solar system prices continue to hover at around $1.17 per watt ($1.17/W) for systems between 10kW and 100kW that we track in our monthly index. Please note that we will soon be publishing general information about pricing for systems above this threshold (i.e. LGC projects greater than 100kW) in the near future. Commercial […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – February 2018

February 14, 2018

Average solar system prices (on ‘primary’ offerings) have slipped slightly upwards since the beginning of the year, coming in at around $1.40/W – as opposed to about $1.30/W in December – due primarily to increased prices in Hobart & Melbourne. Average pricing for ‘premium’ and ‘microinverter’ systems, meanwhile, has dropped to $1.49/W and $1.80/W, respectively. Average solar […]

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Solar power in Sydney, NSW: Compare prices & installers

February 12, 2018

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Sydney is a great place for solar power, and roughly 10-15% of Sydney area homes have solar panels installed on their roofs. This article is 5-point guide to everything you need to know if you’re considering solar power for your Sydney home – including how Solar Choice can help you compare quotes. This article is mostly about […]

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What are the best cities for home solar battery storage? (January 2018 update)

January 24, 2018

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Having just published an article on the state of Australia’s battery storage market at the beginning of 2018 (recently updated), we decided we would endeavour to shed a bit more light on payback period differences between each capital city. Which cities have the best conditions for home solar battery storage? We’ve ranked them below (with an […]

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Is home solar battery storage worth it? (Jan 2018 update)

January 18, 2018

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Since 2015 Australians have been talking about home battery storage being on the cusp of financial viability. Are home batteries worth the investment in 2018? We’ve crunched the number for all of Australia’s capital cities to find out. This article was originally published in February 2017. We then had an August 2017 update, followed by […]

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Is home solar power still worth it in Australia in 2018?

January 11, 2018

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Rooftop solar on its own is already affordable enough to be a smart choice for virtually any Australian home with an unshaded roof and some daytime electricity usage. This is true even in the absence of generous, state-backed solar feed-in tariffs and the (slight) reduction of the up-front incentive for solar available through the federal Renewable […]

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Commercial Solar PV Price Index for January 2018

January 10, 2018

Slight decreases in most capital cities and across most system sizes resulted in an overall average commercial solar system price of about $1.17/W – the lowest on record since Solar Choice began keeping track of commercial solar system prices in May 2014. Commercial solar system prices (10kW-100kW) All prices in the tables below include incentives […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – January 2018

January 9, 2018

In this month’s Solar PV Price Index, the average price for a ‘primary’/standard solar PV system offering remains almost unchanged from December, at about $1.31 per watt ($1.31/W). The average for a premium system was $1.56/W, while the average for a microinverter system was $1.93/W – both up slightly from last month. Average solar PV […]

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Commercial Solar PV Price Index for December 2017

December 12, 2017

This month’s Commercial Solar PV Price Index sees the introduction of 70kW solar systems for the first time (a long overdue addition). The average cost of installing a commercial solar system in Australia currently sits at around $1.19 per watt ($1.19/W) – nominally less than last month‘s figure of $1.20/W and a modest improvement over […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – December 2017

December 12, 2017

The average price per watt ($/W) for primary offerings was $1.30 this month – down slightly from November and a new low since we began tracking prices in 2012. The average for a premium system was $1.54/W, while the average for a microinverter system was $1.86/W. December marks the second month using our new Solar […]

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Solar energy self-consumption explained

December 4, 2017

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When it comes to solar power in Australia, lots of things have changed in the last few years. If you’re currently shopping around for a solar system, perhaps the most important thing you need to keep in mind is this: You’ll get the most out of your solar panels by consuming the energy they produce while it […]

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Commercial Solar PV Price Index for November 2017

November 29, 2017

Average commercial solar system prices remain at about $1.20 per watt (after STC incentive and GST are applied) for the month of November, according to data from the Solar Choice network. While the larger system sizes (30kW, 50kW, 100kW) remained mostly unchanged, average prices for 10kW systems dropped slightly – from $1.34/W last month to $1.30/W this […]

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Solar system size limits: How much does your local network allow? [UPDATED]

November 28, 2017

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What’s the upper limit to the amount of solar panel capacity that you can put on your roof? This is actually a multi-layered question that involves your roof area, your energy saving goals and any applicable restrictions imposed by your local electricity network company. This article touches on all these factors, but focuses mainly on […]

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Sizing residential solar & battery systems: A quick guide

November 27, 2017

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What size solar panel array do you need for your home? And if you’re considering battery storage, what size battery bank would be most appropriate? This article includes tables that provide an at-a-glance guide, as well as links to more comprehensive calculators. [Note that this article was originally published in April 2017.] Solar system sizing […]

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Residential Solar PV Price Index – November 2017

November 7, 2017

We’ve introduced some major improvements to this month’s Solar PV Price Index. Namely: We’ve added 7kW solar systems to all tables We’ve included in new tables & data for ‘premium’ and ‘microinverter’ system offerings We’ve drawn clearer distinctions between ‘primary’, ‘premium’ and ‘microinverter’ pricing We’ve dropped 1.5kW systems from our data tracking (because so few […]

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