Solar power rebates in limbo until at least August

The Federal Government’s Renewable Energy Target (RET) scheme was delayed by the Senate last Thursday (18 June) and will not be voted on until at least August.

For people wanting to install a solar power system, this delay means that any Federal Government rebate is in limbo. The $8000 rebate ended on 9 June, but its expected replacement – originally planned for 1 July – will not be known for some time.

Politicians from both sides have suggested that in the meantime people installing solar power systems should keep their receipts and apply for rebates once the shape of the new system is known.

Anyone buying now would still receive Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), however the multiplier proposed under the Solar Credits (part of the RET) is not in place.

Given the general uncertainty surrounding the RET, it’s probably best to wait and see.

Climate Change Minister Penny Wong has defended ending the rebate scheme early before the replacement system was ready, saying it was fiscally responsible. There were around 63,000 unprocessed applications for $8,000 each in Canberra the day it ended, giving some idea of how popular the scheme was proving.

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This entry was posted on Monday, June 22nd, 2009 at 1:34 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.