Victorian Solar Rebate snapped up within hours of re-opening in July 2019

Pent-up demand for the Victorian state government’s rooftop solar rebate has seen the scheme’s July quota for applications fully subscribed in just days.

The first full year of the $1.3 billion Solar Homes scheme was launched just this week, offering 3,300 applications for the up to $2,225 discount on solar panels, alongside 200 applications for discounted home battery storage.

Solar Victoria said it had expected some “pent-up demand” for the rooftop solar rebate, after a three-month pause in applications.

Within just a few days, however, the month’s allotment for solar PV was snapped up, a note on the website saying that another 3,300 would be offered again starting August 1.

In the meantime, as state energy minister Lily D’Ambrosio noted on Twitter, there remain plenty of rebates for solar for rental properties, solar hot water and home batteries.

The battery rebate offers discounts of up to $4,838 to households with existing solar systems, with a staggered roll-out to a total of 1000 homes – 200 from 1 July, 400 from 1 November and 400 from 1 March 2020.

The battery subsidy is also limited to households in a select number of postcodes throughout the state, listed on the Solar Victoria website.

So far, the battery offering is not flying off the shelves like the rooftop solar rebate – with 175 of the allotted 200 rebates still available for application between now and October 31.