Melbourne · Victoria
Melbourne is five different connection processes wearing one city's name
Which distribution network your site sits on changes the export limits, the paperwork and the timeline. It's decided by the street, not the suburb, and it's the first thing to establish.
The five networks
Every other capital city on this site has one distributor. Melbourne has five, and they don't publish the same rules as each other.
CitiPower
The CBD and inner suburbs
Powercor
Western suburbs and out through the west
Jemena
Northern and north-western suburbs
United Energy
South-east, bayside and the peninsula
AusNet Services
Eastern and outer-eastern suburbs
Your distributor is named on your electricity bill, usually near the meter details rather than anywhere prominent. It's one of the reasons we ask for the whole bill.
Lower yield changes the sizing, not the answer
Each of the five Melbourne networks publishes its own export limits, and some inner-city feeders are constrained enough that a large system gets capped. That's a design input, not a surprise to be discovered after installation.
Melbourne generates less per kilowatt than any other city here, roughly 1,250 kWh per kW a year against Perth's 1,600. A Melbourne system needs to be sized larger for the same annual output, and any proposal quoting Perth-style yields for a Melbourne roof is wrong.
None of that makes Melbourne a bad place for commercial solar. It makes it a place where a system has to be sized honestly. The failure mode here is a proposal built on national average yield figures, which quietly overstates generation by around a fifth and turns a four-year payback into a three-year one on paper only.
1,250
kWh per kW a year in Melbourne
1,600
The same system in Perth
+28%
Extra capacity Melbourne needs to match it
What Victoria actually offers
Victoria has historically run business solar programs through Solar Victoria, and it's the only state on this site where a state-level commercial incentive has been available in recent years. Whether one is open on the day you apply changes, so we check it against your eligibility rather than putting a number on a web page that ages badly.
Victorian Energy Upgrades certificates can also apply to some equipment on a site, which occasionally stacks with a solar project. That's worth raising if you're replacing lighting, refrigeration or heating at the same time.
Federal STCs apply in Victoria as everywhere else, though Melbourne's zone rating means the discount is smaller than a Brisbane or Perth business gets on the same system. The cost page covers how that works.
Melbourne questions
Which network is my Melbourne site on?
It depends on the street, and there's no clean suburb-level rule. Roughly, CitiPower covers the CBD and inner ring, Powercor the west, Jemena the north, United Energy the south-east and bayside, and AusNet the east. Your electricity bill names the distributor, usually in the fine print near the meter details. We check it against the address before quoting rather than guessing.
Does Melbourne get enough sun for commercial solar to work?
Yes, though a Melbourne system generates about 1,250 kWh per kW a year against Perth's 1,600, so it needs to be roughly 28% larger for the same annual output. Payback periods here are longer than in the sunbelt states and still commonly land inside four years for a business with daytime load. Victorian grid rates being what they are helps.
Is there a Victorian rebate for business solar?
Victoria is the only state on this site to have run business solar programs in recent years, through Solar Victoria. Whether one is open on the day you apply changes, and eligibility has usually been tied to business size and system size. We check the current position against your circumstances rather than publishing a figure that ages badly.
Can we be refused permission to export in Melbourne?
You can be limited rather than refused outright, and it happens on constrained inner-city feeders in particular. Each of the five networks sets its own limits. A capped export system can still be worth building if your consumption is mostly during the day, but you want to see the payback calculated both ways before committing.
Send a Melbourne bill and we'll identify your network from it
One recent bill is enough to size a system and price it. It costs nothing, there's no obligation, and you'll hear back within 48 hours.