Solar Feed-In Tariff Perth: What You Get for Exporting Solar

If you have solar panels in Perth and export excess power to the grid, you receive a feed-in tariff (FIT) — a payment per kilowatt-hour exported. Here's what Perth solar owners need to know about the current WA scheme.

Current Feed-In Tariff Rates in WA

In Western Australia, Synergy manages the electricity network for most of the Perth metro area. The Distributed Energy Buyback Scheme (DEBS) is the current feed-in arrangement: Peak rate (3pm–9pm): 10 cents per kWh exported. Off-peak rate (all other times including midday): 2.5 cents per kWh exported. This means the old strategy of maximising daytime export is much less valuable than self-consumption or battery storage, as daytime export earns only 2.5c/kWh while you're buying power at 28–35c/kWh.

Self-Consumption vs. Export

Under DEBS, every kilowatt-hour you consume directly from your panels is worth ~30c (the import rate avoided). Every kWh you export midday earns 2.5c. The maths strongly favours using power while the sun shines: run your dishwasher, washing machine, pool pump, and EV charger during daylight hours rather than at night.

Battery Storage and DEBS

With batteries, you can store excess solar during the day and discharge it in the 3–9pm peak period — either for self-consumption or export at 10c/kWh. This improves battery economics significantly compared to other states.