QLD Solar Feed In Tariff Information

Last Updated: 13th Nov 2024

Solar feed-in tariffs available in Queensland depend on whether you live in the Energex network area in South East Queensland or the Ergon network area in regional Queensland:

If you’re still not sure which network area you’re in after looking at the map above, it’s on your electricity bill.

South East Queensland – Energex

In the South East Energex area – which includes Brisbane, the Gold Coast, and the Sunshine Coast as far north as Noosa – solar feed-in tariffs are Voluntary Retailer Contributions. This means electricity retailers don’t have to pay anything for electricity solar households export to the grid, but in most cases they do.

The following feed-in tariff rates, in cents per kilowatt-hour (c/kWh), are available in South-East Queensland, as of August 2024.

AGL: 4c/kWh, but if your solar inverter capacity is 10kW or less, their Solar Savers plan gives 10c for first 10kWh exported per day, then drops to 4c.
Alinta Energy: 8c/kWh
Diamond: 5.2c/kWh
Energy Australia: Solar Max plan gives 10c/kWh for first 12kWh exported per day then drops to 4.6c/kWh.
Origin: 4c/kWh
Red Energy: 8c/kWh

Note: When an electricity retailer gives a feed-in rate for the first 10 or 12 kWh per day, they actually mean 10 or 12 kWh multiplied by the number of days in the billing cycle. They don’t actually look at every individual day.

For the latest rates from these and other companies, try our electricity retailer comparison tool.

QLD electricity retailer plans with higher solar feed-in tariff rates won’t necessarily result in the lowest electricity bills for solar households. Plans with more generous solar feed-in tariffs aren’t always the cheapest overall – our comparison tool can help you find what might be the best deal for you.

Regional Queenslanders Have A Fixed Feed-in Tariff

Solar owners in the regional Queensland Ergon network area receive a fixed feed-in tariff.

Due to high gas prices and multiple breakdowns at QLD’s Callide coal power station, it’s considerably higher than it was several years ago, as these amounts from previous financial years show:

In recent years the Ergon feed-in tariff has been reasonably high:

2021-22 6.583c/kWh
2022-23 9.3c/kWh
2023-24 13.411c/kWh

For the 2024-25 financial year, the feed-in tariff rate has been set at 12.377 cents per kilowatt-hour – a fall of just over 1c.

In regional Queensland, it used to be that the largest system you could have installed in order to qualify for feed-in tariffs was 5kW (inverter capacity). However, the limit was increased to 30 kW of total rated inverter capacity in September 2017.

Find Feed-In Tariffs And Compare Electricity Retailers

To find current solar FiT incentive rates offered by a wide variety of retailers in your part of Queensland, you can enter your postcode into this handy electricity retailer comparison tool.

Queensland’s Older And Higher Feed-In Tariffs

Queensland households and businesses that applied to install rooftop solar power systems before the 10th of July 2012 were eligible for the state’s Solar Bonus – a 44 cent feed-in tariff. Provided nothing is done to lose this high buyback incentive, it is locked in until the 1st of July 2028.

Keeping Your High Feed-In Tariff

In QLD, in order to maintain your high solar feed-in tariff rate, you have to stay where you are. If you move house, sell the home, rent it out, or change the name on the electricity account, you lose the high rate. The only exception is it can be transferred between spouses if one moves out of the house.

You cannot increase your solar inverter size, but you can replace it with a same-sized or smaller one. You’re also unable to add extra solar panels in a situation where they will exceed the rated capacity of your system’s inverter

If you close your electricity account, you also lose your high FiT, and the same applies if you are disconnected. If you can’t pay your electricity bills because of financial difficulties, losing your high solar feed-in tariff can make paying bills even more difficult.

For further rules and information about keeping your high feed-in tariff, see this page.

The easiest way to find a Queensland electricity retailer offering a good deal on FiT’s is to compare solar feed in tariffs using this tool.