For Australian commercial and industrial businesses that have struggled to make the numbers stack up for rooftop solar, the equation is changing
Australia’s rooftop solar market has grown rapidly, but it’s the industry’s belief that this growth has not been evenly distributed. While Australian households have installed approximately 22 gigawatts (GW) of solar, businesses with rooftop solar installed only accounts for 5.6 GW of the market.
This post was originally published by Ecogeneration
AA recent expansion of Australia’s commercial and industrial (C&I) rooftop solar policy is beginning to close that gap.
In August, the Federal Government announced plans to expand the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES), increasing the maximum eligible solar system size from 100 kilowatts (kW) to one megawatt (MW). Under the SRES expansion, C&I businesses that want to install systems above 100 kW and up to one MW will be able to generate Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs), allowing them to receive an upfront discount on installation costs.
The Federal Government estimates the reform could reduce the upfront cost of mid-scale solar by around 20 per cent, including approximately $68,000 for a 250 kW system and $136,000 for a 500 kW installation.
C&I market shift
Caroline Bennett,
Chief Innovation Officer at Green Energy Group
According to Caroline Bennett, Chief Innovation Officer at Green Energy Group, the Federal Government’s recent announcement is already changing conversations across the C&I market.
“Many rooftop solar businesses are being asked to revisit old quotes for C&I customers due to the appeal of the reduced payback period,” she says.
“The Federal Government’s recent announcement is a good example of how policy can directly unlock projects that were previously marginal.”
This current policy shift is particularly relevant for mid-sized businesses with sufficient roof space and the required daytime load profile to support larger systems. These types of businesses include manufacturers, warehousing and logistics operators, cold storage, and agribusiness.
“Multi-site retail and commercial property owners are another group we’re seeing take another look at solar off the back of the Federal Government’s recent announcement,” Bennett says.
However, upfront cost is only one factor for businesses considering larger rooftop solar installations. Access to capital, grid connection requirements and available incentives also influence investment decisions.
“Long simple payback periods and competing internal access to capital has historically been the biggest barriers for businesses wanting to install rooftop solar, alongside the complexity of certificate schemes and grid connection requirements,” Bennett says.
“The split incentive between tenants and landlords has historically been a barrier too. It’s great to see simple paybacks reduced.”
Navigating incentives
As C&I rooftop solar installation economics improve, understanding which incentives apply to individual projects has been a central focus for C&I businesses. This is where Green Energy Trading comes in.
Established by Ric Brazzale in 2007, Green Energy Trading helps renewable energy and energy-efficiency businesses access Federal and State Government incentives. The company does this through the creation and trading of environmental certificates.
With more than 500 power stations under group’s portfolio, its C&I solar capabilities include access to incentives through all available state-based and national certificate creation methods specialising in compliance management and consistently delivered payment terms.
“At Green Energy Trading, we help C&I customers, and their installation partners determine what incentives they’re eligible for, manage the certificate creation and registration process, and monetise the certificate value through the brokered market,” Bennett says.
“Over our 19-year history we have built up deep operational knowledge of how to efficiently access certificate schemes and apply the most appropriate incentive opportunities specific to each customer’s business site.”
In Victoria, this experience extends to the Victorian Energy Upgrades (VEU) program and Victorian Energy Efficiency Certificates (VEECs). Eligible non-residential solar projects between 30 kW and 200 kW can access upfront VEEC incentives.
Systems installed in Victoria between 30 kW and 200 kW can combine VEECs with STCs or Large-scale Generation Certificates, allowing eligible projects to draw on multiple incentives. This is a significant boost for Victorian projects typically increasing the certificate revenue by at least 38 per cent compared with other states.
Green Energy Trading is part of the wider Green Energy Group, which combines specialist businesses spanning certificate creation, energy-market analysis, engineering, consulting and environmental commodity trading.
“The Group brings together a number of complementary specialist businesses that support customers to access incentives in different activities and jurisdictions,” Bennett says.
“Green Energy Trading works together with our sister company, National Carbon Bank of Australia, to give commercial customers a single point of access to the technical/compliance processing side for value stacking activities. These activities include solar PV and battery energy storage in New South Wales, STCs, and VEECs for solar PV in Victoria.”
Alongside Green Energy Trading and the National Carbon Bank of Australia, Green Energy Markets provides energy market, policy and analytical services, while Green Energy & Carbon Management provides engineering and consulting expertise for larger energy users implementing emissions-reduction projects.
Recently, Green Energy Trading expanded further into the C&I energy sector through the Green Energy Group’s acquisition of Outperformers Next.
This breadth of expertise with the wider Green Energy Trading group essentially provides C&I businesses with a variety of expertise to access multiple incentives and other potential revenue streams.
While the SRES expansion creates a near-term opportunity for larger rooftop solar, Green Energy Trading expects the C&I market to evolve into the battery storage space in the coming years.
“The immediate near-term opportunity is helping customers access available incentives through the imminent SRES expansion and the NSW battery incentives that commenced on 1 September so that more large-scale systems get installed,” Bennett says.
“Beyond that, we see batteries becoming increasingly relevant in markets like Victoria where they aren’t yet as incentivised as NSW. Installers who build capability in storage now will be well placed for that shift.”
According to Bennett, solar can also provide larger energy users with a starting point for broader electrification and emissions-reduction strategies.
“For large energy consumers, the opportunity isn’t just C&I solar,” she says.
Bennett adds that renewable electrification is just one pillar on the decarbonisation journey.
“After accessing the first incentive, energy consumers have a broader understanding of their energy use and are more tuned into the whole incentive landscape and what they could access next as schemes evolve.”
Green Energy Trading sees significant opportunity to help businesses across Australia navigate that changing incentive landscape, especially as C&I energy projects expand from standalone solar towards storage and broader electrification.
“As an experienced, forward-looking partner that understands the whole incentive landscape, we can help business customers make projects stack up financially today, and into the future as the rules continue to evolve,” Bennett says.
This article was featured in ecogeneration magazine (October 2026 edition).