Hand-coded SolarQuotes from 2009.
On Tuesday, I signed the papers to sell SolarQuotes to Origin Energy.
SolarQuotes has been my life for over 15 years, and letting it go feels strange. But for SolarQuotes to have the biggest impact going forward, it needs more than just me at the wheel.
Origin is ending their residential solar and battery installs, but this isn’t them stepping away from renewables. In fact, they want to move faster. Their new strategy? Help more households go solar by connecting them with good independent installers – like the ones in the SolarQuotes network.
This sale puts SolarQuotes in a position to have a bigger impact. The next challenge isn’t just getting more panels on roofs – it’s about electrifying entire homes and integrating everything with an increasingly renewable grid.
We’ve helped Australia solve the rooftop solar challenge. Australia now has more solar per person than any other country. Battery installs are growing fast too. The next step is smart EV chargers, efficient electric hot water, moving off gas, and better energy management.
The more homes with high-quality installs of all these things, the more opportunities we create for Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) and orchestrated loads. This flexibility is key to handling more renewables in the grid and switching off coal.
In the end, having the right installers doing quality work isn’t just good for homeowners – it’s what will drive the renewable transition forward.
That’s why I chose Origin. They’ll be steering people toward trusted experts in the SolarQuotes network – because the fastest way to properly electrify Australian homes is to let the best installers do what they do best.
What Happens Next?
I’ll be sticking around for a few years to help with the transition and make sure SolarQuotes stays on track with good advice, great service, and access to the best installers in Australia.
Although we will be owned by Origin, we won’t be integrated with their main business. We’ll remain an independent business unit, run by our existing team with the same values, vetting and installers.
I’ll be honest – this change makes me nervous. I know not everyone will agree with the decision. But I believe it’s the right move to help more people electrify their homes and speed up the transition to renewables.
If everything goes to plan, Origin will take ownership on December 1.
If you’ve got questions or thoughts, drop them in the comments. I’m here to chat.
About Finn Peacock
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Congrats Finn. Well done for everything that you have done for renewables and running this website.
Thanks Chris.
Thanks Finn for your site’s direct help with our own solar + battery install but more importantly your huge contribution to the industry. The trusted and authoritative reputation you’ve developed has been critical, so I hope this core element is retained by Origin.
Had to check the date and its not the 1st April.
Really wish you all the best for your next endeavor, but M&A aren’t what they used to be, big fish swallow small fish to eliminate the competition these days, the outcome is rarely better for the smaller fish friends.
Hopefully you already have ideas for SolarQuotes v2 once it doesn’t go in the right direction.
I agree with Ryan. This is pretty disappointing.
I understand you’ve worked really hard and created the most amazing website with so much great advice and you deserve to be rewarded for that if you want to sell and cash in.
But it doesn’t seem like a good entity to sell to. The value in Solar Quotes is the independent advice, and I failed to see how origin can ever resolve that conflict of interest.
I’ve been a big fan of your site for years. Independence and honesty were big draw cards so this as a consumer of your fantastic work, this is a conflicting bit of news
I hope all the hard work you’ve put into this has paid off financially. You shouldn’t have to put bein the moral arbitrator of an entire industry above financial success and family. Enjoy your success! It’s well deserved.
As for the site, I really hope Origin can run it at arm’s length. If not, it’ll be a disappointing outcome. I have to agree with prior posts. Big fish swallowing small fish generally isn’t done to empower the small fish. 🙂 Who knows though. With greater resources, Origin might be able to do things you couldn’t alone!
Thanks for the help, laughs and good reads. Be interesting to see how long you willl stay around, – most last 12 months before bowing out to “upper management” pressures.
It’s Oct 17th, not Apr 1st!
Not sure how I feel about this. I guess at least Origin Energy are ending their own solar/battery installations so hopefully Solarquotes can stay “independent”.
But I’m not sure Origin Energy is present in all Australian states. So will they still put any focus on markets like WA, TAS, NT?
Origin will leave SolarQuotes to run independently, same staff, same office, same installer network, we’ll be focused on every state and territory, just like we are today.
so ….it is April the first then!!!
Hope your right about origin but my previous experience with them goes not fill me with confidence. An independent blog to allow questions of a general nature would be useful as big business rarely wants to help in that regard.
THE GOOD: Like many others, I commend you on your unbiased honesty over the years. I’ve been in the industry 15 years now and I’ve only ever known you to create factual blogs. I’ve often referred perspective clients to your page to have our information validated – always a risky move as it could result in my company opening is up to competitor quotes… But a risk I took none the less..
THE BAD: Make no mistake this is a corporate decision to grow Origin business. I fail to see how it can work in terms of how this new business can promote business opportunities to installers without a tie to Origin services or products in some way? I think Origin should be taking about their long term plans for the installer network. The idea of it being, carry on… Nothing changing here simply makes no financial sense for Origin.
Thank you for the visionary comments and observations. I have learned a lot and your articles have been a catalyst for me to venture further, past solar, to battery, HWS heat pumps and getting off most gas, read ducted heating.
Navy have a salutation – “Bravo Zulu” or BZ – It’s a positive offering, meaning Well Done. Enjoy the next chapter in your life and journey. Cheers, Tony, Melbourne.
Solaquotes has been great and unbiased but can’t see origin being the same but hope I’m wrong !!
I share your concerns Peter. It’s hard to image that Origin’s culture and (absence of) customer service won’t eventually bleed into the legacy of SolarQuotes and undermine the great service that SolarQuotes has provided. I hope I’m wrong but I’m not optimistic.
Congratulations Fin. Have gathered a heap of knowledge from your team’s blogs, and comments added tom them by knowledgeable followers. Thanks
Finn
Thanks for your excellent contributions over the past 1.5 decades! I hope that moving solarquotes to Origin works and can still provide the unbiased information so important to your subscribers.
Good Luck Finn. Hope it all works out. Great site and lots of information. Hope Origin will do it justice.
Ill watch with interest…….
Today your small, your overheads are appropriately sized and the product you provide the installers is i imagine priced to reflect that…. Your selling price reflects the input costs and the value you’ve embedded over years, often at a cost in time rather than actual upfront $, Origin however has to pay in $ and has an enormous overhead in its back end courtesy of the rest of the behemoth….as an ex large corporate IT manager I imagine their Oracle financials/ERP likely costs more to run each year than the sum total of every dollar your ever had pass through your business… I hope their overhead cost recovery that is subsequently applied to what was yours, doesn’t then make the business non viable in the longer term….
Wow……change in renewables is absolutely constant hey!!!
Origin!!!! if without knowing any details about your business, I had to pick a camp they were in with relation to your business I would have, in my opinion, put them in the “people we try to keep honest by educating the consumer” camp rather than “people I trust with my baby” camp :<)
We watch with interest
Andy
Hi Andy,
We’re not integrating with Origin, we are running as an independent business unit. Thankfully we won’t be using Oracle any time soon!
Finn
Finn there are a few posts from you that Id like to suggest you print out, frame and refer to in 12 months time with a view to seeing if reality and the contract proved to be in alignment…..
“Origin will leave SolarQuotes to run independently, same staff, same office, same installer network, we’ll be focused on every state and territory, just like we are today.”
“We’ve always been transparent about how we make money:
https://support.solarquotes.com.au/hc/en-us/articles/115000931934-How-does-SolarQuotes-make-money-Will-I-pay-more-for-my-system-by-using-SolarQuotes
That’s not gonna change.”
IM not poking fun at you, I sincerely hope what you say here is what happens…… but I was involved in large business acquisitions in in the defence sector from ADL and saw, as others have suggested….. that reality struck hard and most who sold didn’t hang around all that long when teh “Golden Rule of business” was explained….He who has the Gold makes the rules…..
Rip solar quotes. Your independence was your business model.
Hi Leonard,
We will be an independent unit. Nothing will change in terms of how we recommend installers, solar panels, batteries, or even Ronald’s bad jokes.
Finn
Finn, everybody knows that’s not going to be the outcome. Please don’t lie to us. Wish you all the best.
I’m going to ask Origin for permission to use my good jokes.
I think that might be very limiting…..
I wish you all the best. It got me into electrifying my home (and used the solar installer from here) from this website only 11 months ago. I now have a big solar system, heat pump hot water, home battery, EV car and smart EV charger because of here…
Let’s also not kidd ourselves… companies are around to dominate the market to make money for their share holders. There’s no good will, as CEOs get paid millions to make their yearly target.
Best of luck
Congratulations Finn, from all of us at Bill Hero
We know how hard it is to build the kind of valuable service you and your team have created with Solar Quotes.
I couldn’t agree more that the challenge now is much bigger than putting more solar panels onto more people’s roofs; it’s time now to electrify everything and deliver the integrated products, services and financing required to pull it all together for Australian households and energy consumers.
All the best to you and the team through the transition,
Richard & the Bill Hero team.
Thanks Richard!
I’m really disappointed to find this news, after all your hard work over 15 years and you decide to sell to a fossil fuel giant. This goes against everything you’ve worked towards Finn, I appreciate there was always going to be a time to sell solar quotes and don’t blame you for that, but origin, really?
mate….. when people have billions they can afford to be philanthropic. I don’t think Mr Peacock is up there with Mr Gates!
Life has its costs, challenges, rewards, and demands. It’s a bit selfish of you to both praise and scold in the same post, because of how something may affect you without having knowledge or regard to the circumstances of your target.
If you are a man working for the goodness of the community without regard to financial rewards, then there are excuses for your position, but not if you’re on someone’s payroll, or working for yourself purely for profit.
I’m not making any comment on any likely changes over time as a result of the buyout…. but an open society tends to see absences in roles to be filled…. if you can’t already find an alternative.
As a person who also recently sold their business, I also got similar “I’m disappointed” emails of various politeness. They lasted a day.
The thing is, the customers don’t own the business. This guy does. He’s the one grinding for over a decade and it’s okay for him to have a pay day. His to do with what he pleases. And now Origin’s. If they want to stuff it up then it’s their loss I guess.
Sure you can be disappointed as a potential customer but if you’re reading this Finn, if people are upset, then it means you’ve created something of value, enough to have an emotional impact worried it will chanhe. You should be proud.
In this modern day and age, the people complaining here are likely mostly simultaneously a champion of the financialisation of housing, a promoter of overseas buyers, and other warped incentives driving up houses to ridiculous valuations. Anyone who criticises this guy for selling whilst happy to keep those other debilitating social structures in place is a hypocrite. The only way to compete on a level playing field in this society is to play the same game. Don’t hate this guy for cashing out. Hate the game.
Wow! Big news! End of an era, Finn.
Congratulations on 15 years contribution to the industry.
Wow, didn’t see that coming! I think this is a necessary step if a priority is to get renewable energy to scale in the country, rather than just create lots of little Robinson Crusoe type islands of self-sufficiency.
Are you able to talk about the sort of business model Origin is looking at? Are they just looking to replicate your service, or extend it in someway?
Essentially, the business model is this: Decarbonisation of the grid in Australia is happening. That requires electrifying homes at speed. Origin want to move from installing residential solar and batteries to referring their customers to the installers that do it best (typically small and medium local companies). They’ve realised the SQ network we’ve built is the perfect platform for doing this, the opportunity arose to buy SQ. More households with solar/batteries/ev chargers = more opportunity to build out VPPs and Demand management = a more flexible grid that can handle more renewables.
No it means more ability for them to distort bidding and capacity to create outsized profits in wholesale generation.
They are buying you for the customer leads. Now they will know exactly who has installed solar and batteries and can target those clients to join their VPP.
Ultimately this is bad for competition and highly likely to end up being bad for the environment vs the status quo.
Wow this was a surprise! Fighting the battle against Electricity retailers for years to getting sold to one is ah feel bit weird. But I can understand this part.
Although, I am nervous how Solar quotes will be from now on, because the strong point, the main point was that SQ was Independent, it had no affiliation as such with any Installers, Retailers, Panel or Inverter brand. You can count on them to provide Advice without Any agenda. Do I Trust Origin to do the same? Ummm, Nooo. Considering their tie ups with certain Installers, who may recommend having Origin as preferred retailer post installation or provide additional incentives if you chose origin.
I fear the hidden kickbacks as Origin unlike SQ has stake and incentive in the game.
We’ve always been transparent about how we make money:
https://support.solarquotes.com.au/hc/en-us/articles/115000931934-How-does-SolarQuotes-make-money-Will-I-pay-more-for-my-system-by-using-SolarQuotes
That’s not gonna change.
Yes I am aware, and that is what we love. Although I am not sure this will continue under Origin. I Hope i’m proven wrong.
Having said that, Still Thank you for building this Amazing Community/Wesite. Whatever i have learnt regarding Solar in this country or in general is because of Solar Quotes.
Doesn’t matter in what direction SQ goes from here, that won’t change.
Forever grateful.
Worrying news. If you have any knowledge of the BS origin sales and retention team spout, I would hope you would not go anywhere near this lot to take over your business. Try having a chat about TOU tariffs and rates with one of them and play BS bingo with the responses. Your card will be completed in no time.
Where will all your customers stand regarding guarantees and substandard work by referred installers?
We are talking about the same Origin Energy that has or is in the process of increasing profits by moving out of green energy? How on Earth do you think people will trust an entirely profit driven company to give what is in effect financial advice?
Have steered lots of people towards Solar Quotes after our first experience using a referred installer.
Will have to rethink that after our second on going dismal service by an installer and this news.
TBH part way through writing this I stopped to check it wasn’t 01/04/24.
Well done Finn – for all the work you have put into the site over the years.,
I first saw you talk about renewables at a Renew (Alternative Technologies?) Meeting in Wayville, SA – was that 15 years ago? I thank you for giving people like me the confidence to go ahead with rooftop solar. Your independent voice and wealth of information on your site has been invaluable. I hope it is all retained.
As a customer of Origin, I have no complaints.
Wishing you all the very best.
Beth Walton
Ronald in a corporate setting obeying all the rules. They could sell seats for that. Seriously congratulations as running and growing a business is stressful. A well earned break in the near future.
No new rules for Ronald. Or anyone else.
I assumed part of the deal was no more jokes from Ronald! 😁
Having run my own engineering consultancy for 25 years I can understand your motives for passing the baton. Congratulations on the work you have put into building a highly credible source of information and I think that Origin is a way to make it sustainable for many more years.
Hi Finn,
Is the price good? Why do people avoid giving out that info?
I’ve never had any issues with telling people how much money I make.
Origin is my electricity retailer, and AGL is my gas provider.
Strange? No, Origin cocked up big time! I did the verbal contract on the phone, and it was just incredible pricing, but the next bill showed the correct pricing but for solar export, which was supposed to be 12 cents, but I got 4 cents. It took many months, calls and emails to get it right!
Now I’m waiting for the next price increase, to see which way I go.
Many mistakes will happen using verbal contracts, with people on the other end using English as a second language.
Regards and best wishes for the future, thanks for all your help.
I was always taught that the best approach, in the absence of exact legal advice, was to assume that a contract was entirely confidential. At the very least if you want to disclose an important aspect of a contract to the general public you probably need both parties to agree to do that in writing. Given the environment that Origin works in I struggle to see then seeing any advantage to do so.
This sort of cover it :- https://lawofcontract.com.au/non-disclosure-confidentiality/ specifically the section Breach of Confidence at General Law
Andy
I was always taught that nothing is confidential unless either specifically stated, or ethics suggest it to be the best course.
If you (Andy) don’t actually know what’s in a contract, I’d suggest it would be incredibly naive and unwise to sign it…. just like not signing blank pieces of paper or cheques.
As far as “At the very least if you want to disclose an important aspect of a contract to the general public you probably need both parties to agree to do that in writing”….. I hope you don’t do any paid work in any field near contracts or law!
I think you’ve misunderstood me (which is probably a me communicating thing) If you’re a party to the contract then absolutely you need to understand what is in the contract, and for most of us get commercial and or legal professional advice on the appropriateness of each term. I don’t believe I argued to the contrary.
The OP, myself and yourself are not party’s to the contract and therefore Finn (who presumably is a party to the contract) needs to be careful what he discloses to us in about the contract terms. That was what the link I provided discussed……
And yeah…I spent many years in my career working specifically as a commercial manager looking after IT related contracts…..for a company that was about 6000 people big…..
So, I still say, if in doubt err on the side of assuming its confidential and seeking the other party’s written agreement if you want to disclose to an outside party…. Personally I simply wouldn’t, in this case, I see nothing but grief for doing so with no upside at all….
Gee Fin really enjoyed the at times wild ride – independent and prepared to tell it as it is. In terms of the ‘wheels’ your team were quite magnificent and I’m sure you would acknowledge they have played a key role in growing the blog. Will they be on tap with Origin? Their collective knowledge has been invaluable. Best of luck.
Thank you
Same team going forward.
Congratulations to Finn and all the good folks behind the scenes too. I remember when SQ first started and it’s been amazing to watch you build the empire.
If Origin are really clever, they’ll ensure the independence you are renowned for is protected and the methods to achieve that are transparent. Hope that’s a key focus
It also seems reasonable to postulate that Origin would LOVE to use the enormous databases you have created (and continue to build) to cross promote its energy services. Cross promotion happens all the time and is just marketing, so that’s ok as long as everyone understands what’s happening. A transparent and simple language new Privacy Statement to come soon?
And lastly, fingers crossed that this expands and enhances the great things SQ does and Origin doesn’t just get bored and/or drown you in corp.
Interested in checking how the independence would be after this,
Hi Lee and Finn and all,
To make everyone happier at this sad time (I love reading Solar Quotes) we
hope SQ will expand to included more information.
There is a dearth of info on Solar Inspection services aka Checkups on a completed system, a system being installed etc rather like an independent building inspector.
With more money in system we should be seeing reviews of these services.
Keep up the very Good Work.
Regards
Matt
Hi Lee,
It would need the Scores from Trust Pilot et al (Are they really trusted or can they buy a high score? and similarly for Google etc), at the bottom of the SQ page; to be independently audited from outside BOTH organizations.
This move’s success depends on more transparency than ever before
Ive have had appalling service from Origin which brought me to swear I would never use them again. Pray they will not be used in the operation of SQ (except for giving FREE monies for SQ expansion)
.
Guess everyone has a price!
Origin Energy aka Australia’s 4th largest Carbon Emitter.
Congratulations Finn,
You’ve certainly helped me in the past while you’re book is eminently readable for a lay person.
Two issues I’d like you to raise, if possible in your new role, is
1.access to solar for the many thousands of people who live in high rise buildings .
2 and related to the above, remote solar for the one third of Australians who are renting.
100% owned by Origin and still “independent”. No chance. A sad day for the behind the meter renewable industry.
Not happy Jan
…but good luck to you all with the transition and well done for the amazing job you have all done for 15 years.
One of the features of solar quotes I found most useful was the tables of inverters panels and batteries. I hope this continues. Most installers have their own preference on what they will install based on stock they have committed to and don’t want to do installs the purchaser would like. Having the ability to compare components is a big help when deciding on an installation.
Best of luck with the transition. I got my system through your referral 6 years ago and it’s worked flawlessly- scaling up to help more people seems like a natural progression.
Congratulations on the sale, all your hard work finally pays off. Let’s hope Origin don’t turn around and use this thwart the uptake of rooftop solar to sell their own energy instead.
Congrats and well done on making a big difference to the world!
A very sad day for Australia independent businesses. 🥺
I used SQ for my one and only solar install and it worked out well. I have also learned a lot from Finn and Ronald (especially on batteries).
I can understand Finn getting an offer he can’t refuse, (good on him and I wish him luck) but I have my doubts about the future. I hear what Finn is saying about remaining an independent unit, but I have also seen small companies subsumed by large corporations and it is not without change.
Being independent made it attractive. Having said that, I also have to acknowledge that Finn’s income has come from the installers in his network, so independence is a subjective term.
Solar Quotes has been an inspiration and guide for me since my first quote in 2011. Now a fully electric home with battery and EV. pretty much everything I know about renewable energy I learned through SQ.
Best wishes and thanks for your enormous contribution to the renewable community throughout Australia. Thanks also for including WA. We’re a bit different over here. LOL.
May your future be electric!
Regards William
This sounds similar to Simon Hackett-esque with Internode and TPG just made it average
Like yours, start off with a great concept and add value to a market then only to be sold to one of the multi-nationals. Unfortunately, these experiences haven’t been enjoyable and perhaps it’s not fair to tar you with the same brush but it’s understandable to be somewhat skeptical.
Good luck to you… absolutely enjoyed what you have provided but having an energy retailer continue on your legacy does not provide any deep confidence. For the time being the jury is out… but Finn all the very best for all of the work to date.
The difference here is Internode were not making record corporate profits at the time of sale. Hackett realised their customer base was not large enough to make NBN profitable, at least in part because gov demanded a 6% Internal Rate of Return. Changed days in Australia.
Origin Energy Limited (Origin) reported statutory profit for the full year ended 30 June 2024 of $1,397 million, up from $1,055 million in the prior year.
https://www.originenergy.com.au/about/investors-media/full-year-results-2024/
Ouch!!
I get it, business is business, but Origin?! It’s like selling your beloved cow Daisy to the abattoir and hoping they’ll take good care of her!
Good luck Finn, it’s been a valuable resource in all my knowledge of Solar and more.
Hi Paul,
To expand on your analogy, I think Origin know that using coal to make hay at Erraring isn’t viable anymore.
Origin realise they not only need Daisy’s milk now, but a lot of her calves in the future too.
However as a big corporate operator they have been rubbish at farming for a dozen years; now so they’re handing over the the small holders who do a much better job of rearing productive livestock.
Net result after 15 years ? Prosumers are treated very badly in Australia. My Australian wife calls it (yet another)’ kick in the guts’ I call it a slap in the face. My assesment after two years of going solar is the olny solution is to get off the grid by buying a battery. There again a 10 kWh battery is x3 the cost of anywhere else. It is not just Woolies doing Aussie Price gouging and the Distributed Network Service Providers (DNSP) act with impunity. (ps 8 million people now acessing Foodbank Services – onya Aussie)
All the best.
Hi David,
I would like to point out that if you only got solar two years ago, you paid less than a tenth of the price I and many others did.
The net result after 15 years is that solar installation in Australia is about the cheapest in the world.
Australia has more work to do but for now I think that’s something we should all be proud about.
Sad news Finn. I will be treating Origin with a considerable degree of caution in regard to this acquisition. I have valued your independent advice over the years and have recommended you to my children and my friends. I will be less likely to do so in the future. It will be interesting to see if there are any future articles that may be critical of Origin Energy in the future. Sooner of later, they will clamp down. It is the nature of large profit driven corporations.
On face value this could work. My Dad had an Origin cold caller spruik rooftop solar about 13 years ago and signed up without asking me first, then their contractor did not properly manage the power board upgrade or meter replacement at all, resulting in the distributor refusing to upgrade the meters due to asbestos backing and Dad getting a $600 increase to his next quarterly bill because the meters ran forwards instead of backwards in the interim, which resulted in him struggling to get reimbursed as Origin Billing would not believe his story.
Having them out of installs and genuine contractors only doing the work going forward can only help the industry.
Congrats Finn, and the entire Solarquotes team who have worked with you, to get the business to this point.
It’s been a pleasure following your journey from the early days more than 10 years ago when we first worked together, to supporting you in this process over the past few months.
Enjoy the extra mountain biking time you’ll have!
Everything is for sale at the right price Finn. Hold your head high to know you have helped thousands of families make the right choice. You have also made several people enjoy working with you. Good luck in whatever you do now or in the future.
Congratulations Finn, perhaps in the future you might team up with other Aussies in the energy transformation space such as Saul Griffith. Still lots of work to do.
This is a big surprise Finn, but makes a lot fo sense as the solar (and electrifying everything) sector becomes ever bigger and needs to scale up to serve all the 101 combinations of solar, batteries, EVs, demand management, etc.
Have fun integrating a small team in to big Origin; not easy, but when it works 1+1 =3, and everyone progresses.
Thank you, Finn, for years of brilliant research and freely given advice to so many Australians. Your kindness and vision have helped many people make well-informed decisions about their solar electrical future. The same must be said of your outstanding team. Thank you.
Congratulations Finn, and thanks to you and the team for providing such wonderful knowledge over the years, and I look forward to that continuing in the years to come.
Thank you Finn and team for all the great support you’ve provided over the last 15 years.
When the transition period is over and you move on to your future endeavours, I trust that you will continue working with integrity and enjoy the fruits of your hard work.
Wow. Huge surprise. So long, and thanks for all the fish, sorry, thanks for all the great advice, and take care dancing with the corporate bear.
Origin have been two-faced. They have just been in the press bleating about new utility generation being too slow, when they have done virtually nothing themselves.
Not even since they announced Eraring was going. Which led to a ‘can’t lose’ deal with the NSW government to keep some capacity going longer.
Does this signal they will move forward with a strategy, or a bit of greenwashing?
I don’t trust them, frankly.
While I understand everyone has a price or need to make the most of what they’ve made, I’m very underwhelmed with the news. I’ve read the bit about you’ll have independence from Origin, just owned by them, and that sets me on edge. I’ve seen that with another company that in theory is independent of Origin, just now owned by them, so I’m not hopeful for what your experience will be, sadly.
6 Years I have been directing our customers towards your site for component comparisons, not just customers but multiple Facebook groups as well, I have been reading your articles for just as long and let me tell you, this sale has really thrown me for six.
With a very quick search I was able to find a few interesting articles SQ has published with negative connotations towards Origin.
https://www.solarquotes.com.au/blog/origin-agl-electricity-prices/
The CEO looking fella with $$ for eyes right next to the Origin logo is pretty telling.
https://www.solarquotes.com.au/blog/origin-energys-propaganda-war-renewables/
Whilst this one is from 10+ years ago, there is a trend for Origin here.
https://www.solarquotes.com.au/blog/origin-loop-vpp-review/
This one was from just last year.
The below excerpt says it all.
“This shows that for solar installers that have received 25 reviews or more, only 9% have a customer review ranking equal to or less than Origin’s. I don’t recommend using a company that ranks this poorly. When you use Origin, it appears to be a matter of luck if you get a good or a poor installation.”
Whilst you have said “we will still be independently run”, ownership by a company with a poor industry reputation isn’t a good look for SQ.
As you did with SunPower/Maxeon in August, under you’re own “grandmother rule”, I will not able to recommend your site to anybody and will be actively informing people of this sell out, to which they can make up their own mind on the sites reliability. Of course this is until such time that your actions have proven the sale had no negative effects.
WOW! Didn’t see that coming.
1. Solarquotes has been my GoTo source of solar info for about 7 years. Never been disappointed and always appreciated your upfront and transparent approach and have recommended so many people to you.
2. Congratulations on making a few AUD, you deserve it.
3. Origin oh dear.
4. Although we will be owned by Origin, we won’t be integrated with their main business. We’ll remain an independent business unit, run by our existing team with the same values, vetting and installers.
With respect, no you wont. Sorry, I like SQ and I’m not being nasty or funny but after the smooth transition when everyone gets told its all BAU everything will change. People. Policies. Ethics.
It will be all about “unlocking shareholder value, leveraging synergies and maximising earnings potential”. I can hear Ron groaning from here 🙁
5. Best of luck to the team with your new ventures.
SQ was great while it lasted
All the best Finn and team.
Thank you for all the time and resources you’ve poured into Aussie Solar, I’m sure there are tens of thousands of households that have benefited from the site’s existence.
I’ll drink to your continued success after you’ve moved on to v2, as that’s the nature of the beast. It does make commercial sense to seek top dollar if a sale is inevitable to keep the lights on.
I’ll drink again to the Four Corners documentary on SQ v1 post-Origin once they’ve browbeat most of the installer network into leaving, capitulating or dying out. Will look forward to your independent offering again at that time.
Hi Finn
I liked the fact that Solarquotes was founded by an ex-engineer of a non-profit STEM organization.
Even though SQ is for profit I think you have tried to keep to the ideals of supporting a free market with small operators who deliver quality results at an affordable price point.
As far as Origin goes they are pretty good for a energy company in that they have skin the game (ie they own power stations) and importantly for home solar they have a history of paying respectable FIT’s. Energy companies can say they are green ect however one way to prove it is to pay us home owners with solar for our clean energy exported to the grid.
If you have to sell out to a large corporation then I think you have ticked a decent number of boxes like the engineer you are. Origin don’t compete in the solar install game, its in their interest to have more solar in the grid and they are allowing SQ to be run an an independent unit.
On a more general note I understand why people are upset. The ACCC is investigating how our free market is being eroded by serial acquisitions. They are finding that in general some large companies are able to pull levers that are not in the public interest to boost profits rather than through innovation, good customer service and providing good value.
https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/evidence-backs-case-for-critical-merger-law-reform
It would have been nice to see SQ be passed on to its staff, a non-profit organization or a smaller company. I realise however this is not as simple as just taking an offer from the big end of town. Given that SQ has its own built in soap box (blog) it would have also been nice to use it as a platform to help facilitate the sale. For example you could have posted that your looking to sell but would like to stick to your ideals and are seeking offers from interested parties. SQ could have even switched to a NFP volunteer run organization and made it free to installers to reduce solar prices.
Thank you so much Finn. I’ve watched this site for over a decade and it’s that rare diamond of truth and integrity.
We’ll see if Origin can match your integrity.
Please let us know when you’re ready to receive your Order of Aust medal for your contribution to stopping climate change.
Bravo.
Congratulations Finn and the team. I look forward to continuing to hear from you for a while yet.
I can see where the worries come from and I guess only time will tell but I remain confident, not least because of the interested user community you have built up. These comments pages are a mine of info and when combined with the SQ blogs it’s more than my poor brain can process some days.
Keep up the good work.
Recently had over 30 kws installed. Would love to chat offline, Finn.
I think you’ve made a good move to keep things on a levelish playing field.
I’m with origin for supply, and they seem the most stable.
Cheers
All the best with it. Hopefully Origin will make it work well. Unfortunately large companies, despite their best intentions, often fail with small independent business units, even if don’t intend to integrate them with their main business.
I remain hopeful however.
Perfect timing: AI is poised to kill Google Search, and probably the web as we know it.
Finn,
Many thanks for all you have done for individuals, the country and the world. Not many can claim to have done so much good.
However I agree with many of the other commenters: Origin is just another corporate shark spouting greenwashing. I would no sooner trust Origin with our electricity than a fox to guard a hen house. That’s why, having seen the actions, motives and pecuniary shenanigans of governments, utilities and other corporations, I have gone off grid. They can all go to hell.
Well done Finn. It is always good to see a small business, built from the ground up, move on to its next phase. Changing ownership generates mixed feelings; sort of like watching the kids leaving home. It is a measure of success seeing them move out, but one looses a lot of influence over how they subsequently lead their lives. I know some of the engineering folk at Origin Energy, and they are good people.
While I don’t agree that everything that is posted in the blog section is technically correct, I have referred on hundreds of people who are interested in solar to your site. Hopefully, this wealth of independent assessment and comment will remain, and keep drawing people to the business.
I think you have achieved your personal mission to help decarbonise the grid. I would also add that the next two years (during your slow withdrawal) is going to feel somewhat strange. Don’t be afraid to reach out for help (family, trusted friends, even professionals) if you find the translation a bit overwhelming. Also keep in mind that as one door closes another will surely open – and there is more than enough work to go around.