Commonwealth Bank (CBA) is handing homeowners who purchase a Tesla solar battery a huge discount to help solve their pricey power problems.
The major bank is shaving a whopping $1,300 off the Tesla Powerall 3 when purchased through Wattle Powr, which is part of UPowr – giving customers up to 14 per cent off the current full price of the battery, bringing it down to $8,589 excluding GST and installation.
The move will hopefully help the battery tech finally break into the mainstream after a decade of high installation costs saw homeowners largely avoid the storage system, despite the potential savings.
Until now, the cost of a battery has ranged anywhere from $12,000 to $30,000 (depending on the size of the system) while only netting up to $1400 per year in savings, meaning that over a 10 year-life span homeowners would be lucky to break even on their initial investment.
CBA research confirmed that this cost-benefit analysis has turned away at least a third of Aussie homeowners who were interested in installing solar batteries, with that figure rising to half for homeowners who already had solar installed.
Out of the 3.2 million Aussie homes that have solar panels fitted to the roof, the Australian Energy Council estimate that only 250,000 have a home battery – less than one in 14 households.
But with the help of a new round of rebates for solar tech and CBA’s savings scheme, CBA general manager Joel Larsen says that the substantially lower entry price tag will finally see homeowners get some return on their investment.
“We’re keen to help our customers reduce their electricity bills sooner,” he said.
“For those who have recently bought an EV but held off on purchasing a battery, now is a great time to get a good deal.”
What other solar battery incentives are available?
In addition to CBA’s $1,300 savings, various state-based incentives can further reduce the cost of installing solar batteries.
In New South Wales (NSW), homeowners can benefit from rebates ranging between $770 and $1,140 for a 6.5 kWh battery, and between $1,600 and $2,400 for a larger 13.5 kWh system.
In the Northern Territory (NT), eligible households and businesses can claim a grant of $400 per kilowatt hour of usable battery capacity, capped at $5,000.
While Queensland previously offered rebates of up to $4,000 for battery installations, this program concluded on May 8, 2024.
In Victoria, households can access low-interest loans of up to $8,800 to assist with installing solar battery systems. Similarly, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) offers zero-interest loans ranging from $2,000 to $15,000 for energy-efficient purchases, including solar batteries.
