In short
- Solar pays for most Australian wineries, but the return comes from the power the winery uses itself, not from exports. In South Australia and Victoria, exports are worth very little.
- The load is lopsided: refrigeration and crushing run hard from February to April, then the cellar door, barrel hall and bottling line carry the rest of the year.
- Size the system to the year-round daytime load, and treat the vintage peak as the case for a battery, not for more panels.
Yes, solar usually saves an Australian winery money in 2026, as long as the system is sized to what the winery uses in daylight across the whole year, not to the vintage peak. A winery's power use is seasonal and the export credit on a rural feeder is small or zero, so the sums depend on how much of the solar the site uses itself. That is in your interval data, which we get from your bill.
| Quick facts | Solar for a winery |
|---|---|
| Share of solar used on site | often 60–70% over a year; higher at vintage, lower in winter |
| Part of the bill solar can cut | daytime energy, and sometimes the demand charge set at vintage |
| Part it can't cut | overnight tank cooling, the fixed daily charge |
| Export value | weak in SA and VIC, often zero on a rural feeder with an export limit |
| What to send | one recent bill; we get the interval data from it |
Why is a winery's load different?
Most businesses have one load pattern. A winery has two.
- Vintage, February to April. Crushers, presses, must chillers and tank refrigeration run long hours, often around the clock. This is when the winery sets its demand peak for the year, and when a hot afternoon pushes refrigeration hardest. Solar output is also high in those months, so the match is good during the day and absent at night.
- The rest of the year. Barrel-hall and bottle-store cooling, the bottling line on its scheduled days, the cellar door, kitchen and offices. A much smaller load, still mostly in daylight, and in winter the panels make a third to a half of their summer output.
The trap is sizing to vintage. A system that covers the March afternoon load will export most of what it makes from May to September, and on a rural feeder that export is often capped or paid nothing. Commercial solar cost explains why the self-use share decides the payback more than the price per kW.
How much will solar save a winery?
A worked example with made-up figures. These are example figures, not our prices or a real site.
A winery in the Barossa, South Australia, puts in a 100kW system. At the example output used on our cost page, 1,450 kWh per kW a year, it makes about 145,000 kWh a year.
- Over the year the winery uses about 65% of the solar itself: nearly all of it at vintage, around half of it in winter.
- At $0.28 for each kWh it no longer buys and $0.05 for what goes to the grid: 94,250 kWh × $0.28 = $26,390, plus 50,750 kWh × $0.05 = $2,538. Yearly saving $28,928.
- At an example price of $73,000 after the STC discount, that pays back in about 2.5 years.
Now the South Australian version. If the export credit is zero, which is common on a capped rural connection, the saving is $26,390 and the payback is about 2.8 years. Still a good result. The point is that the 35% exported earned almost nothing either way, so the next 50kW of panels would mostly export and would earn far less per kW than the first 100kW.
A small cellar door with a kitchen and a cool room is a different case: a 30kW system at the cost page's $21,000 to $29,000 after STCs, used mostly on seven-day trading, often sits in the same two-to-three-year range. The 30kW guide covers the roof and output for that size.
Should a winery add a battery?
Test it against two things, not against overnight storage in general.
- The vintage demand charge. If your tariff has a demand component, the peak set in March can price the whole year. A battery that trims the chiller start-up peaks for eight weeks might pay where a battery for year-round night use would not. Ask for the demand saving on its own line.
- Spare export at vintage. In the example about 35% of the solar is exported over the year, but at vintage almost none is. A battery charged at midday in winter has little to shift. Run the numbers month by month, not on the annual total. See commercial solar batteries.
The NSW Peak Demand Reduction Scheme gives businesses an upfront discount on batteries from 20 kWh to 30 MWh, larger when new solar goes in within 90 days. That is relevant to Hunter, Orange and Riverina wineries. It does not apply in SA, VIC or WA.
Rural feeders and export limits
Many wineries sit at the end of a long rural line or on a single-wire earth return line. Networks limit how much a system can export on those lines, and sometimes set the limit at zero. The Australian Energy Regulator's export limit guidance sets out how networks are meant to decide this, but the limit on your line is a question for the network's connection enquiry.
This matters in three ways. An export limit does not stop you installing; it limits what goes out, and the inverter is set to hold it. It makes the self-use share the whole story. And a winery with several meters, say the winery, the cellar door and a pump shed, may do better with a system on each meter than one large system behind one.
What does each state offer a winery?
The federal STC discount applies everywhere, and since 1 October 2026 it covers eligible systems up to 1MW. The states add little for solar.
| State | What matters for a winery |
|---|---|
| SA | No state rebate on solar. Export value is the weakest in the country at midday, so size to the site's own use. Some councils run their own schemes. |
| VIC | Victorian Energy Upgrades gives an upfront discount on business solar systems between 30kW and 200kW through an accredited provider. Exports in the Yarra Valley, Mornington and the north-east are low value. |
| NSW | No rebate on solar. The Peak Demand Reduction Scheme discounts batteries from 20 kWh. Useful for a winery whose demand peak is set at vintage. |
| WA | No state rebate for business solar, and the buyback scheme doesn't cover commercial systems. Margaret River and Swan Valley systems earn from self-use only. |
| QLD | No state rebate. Feed-in credits in the south-east are set by retailers. Granite Belt wineries sit on Ergon's regional network. |
| TAS | Not checked yet. Nothing on this page applies to Tasmania until it is. |
Full detail and dates are on commercial solar rebates. The ATO's instant asset write-off can also apply to the system for an eligible small business; your accountant decides whether it does for yours.
What should a winery send for a proposal?
Just one recent bill, every page, for each meter you want looked at. Using the NMI on it, the team gets your interval data, which shows the vintage peak, the winter trough and the overnight cooling load. You don't need to request anything from your retailer.
If you know them, these help too. Mention them in the form:
- Vintage dates and tonnage: when crushing starts and ends, and whether it is growing
- Refrigeration: tank jackets, glycol plant, barrel hall and bottle store set points
- Bottling: on site or contract, and how many days a month the line runs
- Roof or ground: winery sheds are often the right roof; a ground mount near the pump shed is sometimes better
What to ask your installer
- How much of the solar will we use at vintage, and how much in July, from our interval data?
- What export limit has the network given this line, and is the inverter set to hold it?
- What does the system save at our real rate per kWh, with exports priced at what we actually get?
- If you suggest a battery, what does it do to the demand charge set at vintage, shown on its own line?
- Who warrants the shed roof after the panels go on?
Only your interval data shows how your vintage and winter loads line up with the sun. Send a bill and an accredited installer prepares a costed proposal sized to how your winery uses power. It's free, with no obligation. Already have a quote? Compare it line by line with our checklist.