You may be able to receive assistance with the cost of installing a solar water heater or an electric heat pump water heater in your home.
Three forms of assistance are available:
Different criteria apply to each of these rebate schemes and you may be eligible for more than one.
If you intend to claim a rebate make sure you have read and fully understood each of the rebate criteria before committing to a new water heater.
South Australian Government's solar hot water rebate
A rebate of $500 is available to low-income households who install a solar water heater or an electric heat pump water heater into a new or existing home.
To qualify you must be the owner-occupier and hold one of the following concession cards:
- Centrelink Health Care Card
- Centrelink or Department for Veterans' Affairs Pensioner Concession Card
- Department of Veterans' Affairs Gold Card - Totally and Permanently Incapacitated
- Department for Veterans' Affairs Gold Card - War Widow
- Department for Veterans' Affairs - Extreme Disablement Adjustment
For full eligibility criteria and how to apply see solar hot water rebate.
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Australian Government solar hot water rebate
Please note that this rebate has closed to water heaters installed after 28 February 2012 and will close in full to all applications on 30 June 2012.
If you are replacing a conventional electric storage water heater in an existing home and you ordered or installed your system prior to 28 February 2012 you may be eligible for:
- $1,000 rebate if you install a solar water heater
- $600 rebate if you install an electric heat pump water heater.
This rebate is available to homeowners, landlords or tenants.
- If you have installed a system prior to 28 February 2012, your application must reach the Australian Government within 122 days from the date of installation.
- If you purchased or ordered (and paid a deposit) for a system up to 28 February 2012, but installed it after 28 February 2012, applications must be received by the Australian Government by 30 June 2012.
Please note that:
- Systems purchased or ordered after 28 February 2012 are not eligible for this rebate.
- Applications received by the Australian Government after 30 June 2012 will not be eligible.
For more information see Australian Government Solar Hot Water Rebate.
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Small-scale technology certificates (STCs)
Installing an eligible solar or electric heat pump water heater entitles you to small-scale technology certificates (STCs), which can be sold to registered agents or traded individually.
Each STC represents an amount of renewable energy generated, so the more renewable energy your water heater can produce, the more STCs you will get.
You can either:
- receive a point of sale discount by assigning your STCs to the retailer or installer when you buy your water heater - this is the most common option.
- register your STCs and sell them through the STC market or STC clearing house yourself.
The dollar value of the STC offered by retailers and installers varies day to day. If you choose to trade your STCs yourself through the STC clearing house the price is fixed at $40 per certificate.
For further information and to find out how many STCs you could receive see solar water heater owner's guide from the Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator.
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