NT Feed In Tariff Information
When it came to economic return, the Northern Territory was the best place in the nation to install rooftop solar panels in Australia. There was plenty of sunshine and NT had the last remaining generous solar feed-in tariff for new installations.
But on April 5, 2020, the Northern Territory Government announced a new standard Feed in Tariff (FiT) of 8.3 cents per kWh (ex. GST) was to apply to all new business and residential solar installations up to 30kW capacity. Existing installations were to keep the previous rate for a while – but more on this below.
As of March 2024, the standard feed-in tariff rate is 9.13 c/kWh (inclusive of GST).
But there’s still plenty of sunshine, so solar is still certainly worth it in NT. However, the payback period will now be longer.
The “Premium” Feed-in Tariff
The Northern Territory previously offered a gross feed-in tariff of 26.05 cents a kilowatt-hour, which was the same as the standard tariff for electricity, including GST. So every kilowatt-hour of electricity your rooftop solar system generated would save you that much money on your electricity bill whether you used the power yourself or sent it into the grid.
This previous rate was then called the “Premium” feed-in tariff.
Unusually for Australia, commercial electricity rates in the Northern Territory are higher than residential rates, so the NT commercial feed-in tariff (Premium) was equal to the commercial standard tariff of 30.32 cents per kilowatt-hour.
Keeping The Premium Feed-In Tariff
For those lucky enough to have a system already installed as at April 5, 2020 (or have their paperwork lodged with Power and Water), they were able to keep the PFiT for four years from installation date assuming they don’t upgrade system capacity, move premises or take advantage of a new battery subsidy that was announced the same day as the rate cut.
For those who had received the Premium feed-in tariff for four years or more, the rate changed to the standard rate of 9.13 c/kWh from July 1 2022.
The Northern Territory’s Power And Water Corporation
Electricity, water, and sewage disposal services in the Northern Territory are provided by the Territory Government owned corporation, Power And Water. It is run by very talented people who never confuse the three, so taking a shower in Darwin is not a shocking experience – but always, always check for crocs in the shower cubicle first.
Jacana Energy is responsible for the electricity retail operations of Power and Water. There is only one other electricity retailer in the NT currently – Rimfire Energy.