Powercor’s flexible solar exports trial

Thousands of Victorians have installed solar panels, which is creating an abundance of renewable energy during the day. All that solar is helping reduce power bills and emissions, but it can also put stress on the network.  

To manage the challenge, some solar customers have low, fixed limits placed on the amount of energy they can export.  

This helps to manage the technical challenge but reduces the amount of renewable energy households can make available across the network.

Flexible exports – a smarter way to connect solar

We’re developing a smarter way to manage the flow of solar power into our networks.  

With support from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), we’re partnering with 100 customers to trial flexible solar exports. 

Households who may be eligible for this trial will have recently installed solar but were approved to export less than what their system is capable of.

How flexible exports works

Our trial will allow participants to export more of their surplus solar. By removing their fixed limit, these customers will be able to export up to the capacity of their inverter.  

On rare occasions when an excess supply of energy risks overloading the network, we will temporarily reduce the flow of solar power from these households. Even in these events, participants’ exports will not be reduced below their current fixed limit. 

By adjusting solar exports in real-time, we can enable customers to export more energy while ensuring the stability of the network on days when excess energy is generated. 

Eligible customers will be invited to participate in the trial directly, with Flexible Exports scheduled to be offered more widely across our network in the future.