CEC To Duke It Out For Approved Solar Product Listing Role

Australia’s Clean Energy Council (CEC) has signalled it wishes to continue in its role of keeper of the “single source of truth” on approved solar products.

For a solar power system to be eligible for Australia’s solar rebate, it must use CEC-approved solar panels and inverters. The Clean Energy Council has published and maintained lists of Australian Standards-compliant approved modules, inverters ( and more recently, batteries) for more than a decade.

But as a consequence of recommendations from the Integrity Review of the Rooftop Solar PV Sector and subsequent consultation, Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator (CER) announced yesterday it will soon open an application process that will open the door to potentially another body maintaining the lists.

Commenting on the consultation, the Regulator states:

“Strong arguments were made for both options; proceeding with an application process to nominate a body or to simply leave the ‘status quo’ with the Clean Energy Council (CEC) remaining as the listing body.”

There Can Be Only One

In an email sent out yesterday, the Clean Energy Council says it is committed to continue undertaking this role and will be participating in the application process.

“The Clean Energy Council is proud of its role in assessing the standards necessary for solar panels, inverters and batteries installed in Australia and protecting Australian consumers from products that don’t meet these requirements for safety and quality,” said CEC Chief Executive Kane Thornton.

 

“As such, the Clean Energy Council remains dedicated to providing this service to the CER (subject to the application process outcome) as well as the wide array of third parties that rely on this service from the Clean Energy Council to ensure the integrity of the products being installed and connected to the Australian energy system.”

The CER says it will release further information about the nomination process and kick off a 3-month application round from May or June this year. While this plays out, The CEC will continue in its current role of publishing and maintaining approved solar product lists.

CEC Bows Out Of Installer Accreditation Race

Another very important role up for grabs is the operation of Installer Accreditation in Australia, applications for which closed on the 15th of this month. The CEC has been the installer accreditation scheme operator for the last 15 years, but last week announced its decision not to provide an application to continue in this role.

Among its reasons for bowing out:

“Operating the Installer Accreditation program is resource-intensive, diverting resources and effort away from the critical role the Clean Energy Council plays supporting the rooftop solar sector, advocating for strong regulation and delivering quality training and education for installers and the solar industry.”

The accreditation program will operate as it has done has until a decision is made by the CER on the outcome of the application process. The Clean Energy Regulator expects to notify applicants of assessment outcomes during May 2023 and publish the outcome during June 2023.