The home battery installation count in Western Australia is rapidly increasing, as too is the national total according to an update from Federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen.
How Many Home Batteries Installed In Western Australia?
Since the formal launch of the Cheaper Home Batteries Program (CHBP) and WA Residential Battery Scheme (RBS) on July 1, 2025, more than 22,000 home batteries have been installed by Western Australian households and businesses. In just over the 6-month period involved, more than double the number of systems were in place that existed prior to the subsidies.
The tally represents 12 per cent of all installations under the CHBP to date; which tracks closely to the proportion of rooftop solar panel systems in WA (12.9%) against the national total. Six of the state’s postcodes are among Australia’s top 20 for battery uptake.
Given more than 553,000 solar power systems have been installed across the state, the current tally still only represents 4% of PV systems accompanied by energy storage; so there’s plenty of room for growth.
Minister Bowen said the installation numbers in WA were fantastic.
“We want more Western Australian households to have access to batteries that are good for bills and good for the grid.”
What About WA VPP Uptake?
There is an added sweetener in Western Australia, although it has a much too bitter aftertaste for some.
WA’s Residential Battery Scheme can be combined with the federal rebate. Synergy customers can get up to $1,300 and for Horizon customers, up to $3800. There’s also a no-interest loans aspect, up to $10,000.
But the catch is that unlike the CHBP, batteries must not only be Virtual Power Plant (VPP) capable but actually participate in a VPP program. And there’s not much of a choice in VPP providers in Western Australia currently. There’s Synergy Battery Rewards, Horizon Community Wave and Plico Energy VPP.
This requirement has been a deal-breaker for some, who have chosen to forego the state cash and just take the federal subsidy. Aside from being suspicious of VPPs, many were disappointed after the original state program was subject to substantial re-jiggering just three weeks prior to the CHBP hitting prime time.
While I don’t have any very recent figures for Residential Battery Scheme uptake, looking back at October last year, 10,575 batteries had been installed and commissioned in Western Australia since the CHBP launched. Around mid-November, the Cook Government said 4,500 solar batteries had been installed under the WA Residential Battery Scheme.
That works out to around 42% supported by both schemes.
But the Cook Government also said the program had received more than 18,000 applications by mid-November. However, there was no breakdown of application status provided; e.g., pending, approved, rejection and abandonment rates.
What’s The Latest National Solar Battery Installation Tally?
Minister Bowen said the CHBP has helped more than 190,000 households and small businesses across Australia so far — and around three-quarters of installations have occurred in the suburbs and regions.
From 1 July to 31 December 2025, Australians installed 184,672 home batteries. So, 2026 appears to have gotten off to a solid start with at least 5,300 new solar batteries in place despite holiday disruption.
The Cheaper Home Batteries Program In 2026
It became apparent very quickly after the CHBP program launched that its originally earmarked funding ($2.3bn) was not going to last the distance; which is 2030. In fact, it could have been exhausted as soon as June next year due to the way the rebate works makes big batteries particularly attractive.
More funding was announced, bringing the kitty to $7.2 billion over the next four years. Requirements have been tightened up on big batteries, and already-scheduled rebate reductions have been increased, along with reductions happening twice a year instead of once.
Learn more about the changes and impact of rebate reductions on a selected range of battery systems.
About Michael Bloch
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I have to admit, 42% take up on their VPP tied subsidy is higher than i thought they would get.
A breakdown on what the percentages are in their two different subsidy areas would be interesting. One would think where the higher subsidy is offered the take up might be better.