Queensland's Feed-In Tariff Is Dropping. Here's Why That Makes Battery Storage a Better Investment Than Ever.

Queensland's feed-in tariff — the rate you get paid when your solar panels send power back to the grid — is dropping by 29% for 2026-27. It's set to fall to around 6.15 cents per kilowatt hour.

If you've got solar and you've been relying on export payments to offset your bills, that's a hit. But for homeowners who've been sitting on the fence about battery storage, this news actually makes the decision a lot clearer.

Here's why.

When exporting solar barely pays, storing it starts to make a lot more sense

The maths on solar batteries has always come down to one comparison: what do you get paid to export your excess solar versus what do you pay to buy electricity at night?

In Queensland, the best feed-in tariff you can get right now is around 8 to 10 cents per kilowatt hour from most retailers. Come July 1, that rate drops again — to as low as 6.15 cents in regional Queensland.

Meanwhile, the cost to buy electricity from the grid in the evening sits at 28 to 35 cents per kilowatt hour depending on your plan.

So right now, every unit of solar power you export earns you around 6 to 8 cents. Every unit you could have stored and used at night instead would have saved you 28 to 35 cents.

That gap is why battery storage is increasingly the smarter move — and with the government currently subsidising the cost of installing one, the timing has never been better.

The Cheaper Home Batteries Program is still running — but the rebate steps down every six months

The federal government's Cheaper Home Batteries Program is a live rebate scheme that reduces the upfront cost of a battery system. It's been running since July 2025, has already supported over 160,000 Australian households, and has funding locked in through 2030.

The current rebate works out to roughly $250 per usable kilowatt hour of storage for standard-sized home batteries. On a 10kWh system — which covers most Brisbane households overnight — that's around $2,500 off the cost of installation.

The catch is that the rebate steps down automatically every six months. The longer you wait, the less you get. There's no announcement or deadline — it just quietly reduces twice a year.

What size battery does a Brisbane home actually need?

For a typical three to four person household in South East Queensland running a 6.6kW solar system, a 10 to 13kWh battery will cover most of your evening power usage. You generate during the day, store the excess, and run your home at night without touching the grid.

If you've got a pool, an electric vehicle, or run air conditioning heavily, you may need to size up. The right answer depends on reviewing twelve months of your actual energy bills alongside your current solar generation data — which is what we do before quoting any battery system.

What to watch out for before you install

Not every battery suits every home. A few things worth knowing:

• Older solar systems may need a switchboard upgrade or a hybrid inverter before a battery can be added. This isn't always the case, but it's worth getting checked before you commit.

• The battery needs to be on the approved products list to qualify for the government rebate. We handle that paperwork in-house.

• Installation has to be done by a licensed electrician — not a solar-only company. All our battery work is carried out by our own team, no subcontractors.

  
  

Is now the right time?

If you already have solar and you're exporting power during the day, the honest answer is yes — the window where batteries offer the best combination of government support and feed-in tariff conditions is right now, in mid-2026. Feed-in rates are falling. The rebate is stepping down. Electricity prices aren't going anywhere.

If you're not sure whether battery storage makes financial sense for your home specifically, give us a call and we'll review your bills before we recommend anything.

Call Dean on 0400 571 610 or request a free quote at djedwardselectrical.com.au — we'll tell you exactly what your home qualifies for and what the numbers actually look like.