Australia’s 3 hours of free electricity started 1 July 2026 (Oct in VIC). See who benefits in NSW, SA, SE QLD, & VIC—and how a battery maximises evening savings.
Since 1 July 2026, Australia's new 3 hours free electricity initiative—the Solar Sharer Offer—has let eligible households draw three hours of free electricity midday, when solar generation peaks. It aims to shift usage to daylight hours, ease grid pressure and lower bills, while opening new ways to maximise solar power, smart appliances and energy-efficient habits.
Free electricity sounds like a guaranteed win, but the real questions are who benefits most, and how households actually capture the savings. Below, we break down who gains, the benefits and limitations, and a practical worked example.
Where, When, and How It Works
There isn’t a single national scheme. Two separate programs deliver free midday electricity: the federal Solar Sharer Offer (SSO), which covers New South Wales, South Australia, and South East Queensland, and Victoria’s Midday Power Saver.
Quick Comparison: Window, Cap, and Start Date by State
| State/region | Free-power window (local time) | Daily free cap | Start date |
|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 11 am–2 pm | 24 kWh | 1 July 2026 |
| South East Queensland | 11 am–2 pm | 24 kWh | 1 July 2026 |
| South Australia | 12 pm–3 pm | 24 kWh | 1 July 2026 |
| Victoria | 11 am–2 pm | 24 kWh | 1 October 2026 |
| Western Australia | No confirmed offer | — | Not announced |
NSW, SA and South East Queensland are covered by the federal Solar Sharer Offer; Victoria runs its own Midday Power Saver. All windows apply every day, including weekends. Regulators set the 24 kWh cap and free windows and they're the same across retailers—but plan names, rates outside the window, supply charges, and how you opt in vary, so always compare before switching.
NSW, SA, & SE QLD (Solar Sharer Offer)
All three share the same mechanics from 1 July 2026. Up to 24 kWh of free electricity a day, with the windows in the table above (SA runs an hour later). To qualify, you need a household smart meter, must not be on an embedded network, and must be with a retailer required to offer the SSO. Renters and owners both qualify. Note that the offer covers South East Queensland only (the Energex area); regional QLD on the Ergon network isn’t in the initial rollout.
Victoria (Midday Power Saver)
Victoria runs its own scheme, the Midday Power Saver. It will be available from 1 October 2026, with a free-power window of 11 am to 2 pm every day and the same 24 kWh daily cap, with most retailers required to offer it. Contact your retailer from 1 October 2026 to check whether it suits your home.
Western Australia
WA currently has no confirmed 3-hour free electricity offer. Households there can still cut daytime costs with solar and a battery.
How Much of Your Battery Can 24 kWh Charge?
The 24 kWh daily cap is the amount of free grid electricity you can draw inside the window. Because charging and discharging a battery loses a little energy, not all of it ends up usable. Here’s how the cap maps onto three common battery sizes—and what the stored energy is worth in the evening peak.
Please note—these are illustrative figures, not published rates. The numbers below assume a 90% round-trip efficiency (typical for a modern battery) and an example evening-peak rate of 45c/kWh. The actual Solar Sharer and Midday Power Saver rates vary by retailer and aren’t all published yet, and your battery’s efficiency will differ. Use this as a rough guide only and swap in your plan’s rate and your battery’s specs to work out your real savings.
| Battery Size | Grid Draw Needed | What the 24 kWh cap achieves | Usable Energy for the Evening | Evening-peak saving (@ 45c/kWh) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 kWh | ~11 kWh | Full charge, with ~13 kWh of the cap to spare for daytime appliances | 10 kWh | ~$4.50/day |
| 20 kWh | ~22 kWh | Effectively a full charge, just inside the cap | 20 kWh | ~$9.00/day |
| 30 kwh | ~33 kWh | ~72% charged from the cap alone; top up the rest from your own solar | ~21.6 kWh | ~$9.70/day |
What this shows: a 10 kWh or 20 kWh battery fills comfortably inside a single free window, while a 30 kWh battery gets you roughly three-quarters of the way there before you lean on rooftop solar to finish the job. One more thing to check: absorbing 24 kWh over three hours is about an 8 kW average charge rate, so your inverter and battery need enough charging power to use the whole window (a 10 kWh fill needs only about 3.7 kW).
Per-day figures also add up. Even at a conservative 200 days of full use a year, allowing for weekends away, cloudy spells, and days you don’t fully cycle, the 20 kWh example is roughly $1,800 shaved off evening-peak costs. Your real result depends on your actual peak rate, how fully you cycle the battery, and the weather. To understand the rates you’ll pay outside the free window, see our guide on whether a time-of-use tariff is right for your solar battery and how a battery can cut peak electricity charges.
Who Will Benefit Most?
The policy encourages daytime electricity use and reduces the strain on the grid during evening peaks. Certain households are especially well-positioned to benefit:
Households with Battery Systems
Homes with a solar battery system stand to gain the most. On sunny days, they already generate their own power; on cloudy days or when solar dips, they can use the free hours to charge the battery from the grid. Instead of letting free electricity go unused, a battery stores it for the evening, helping reduce electricity bills and improve long-term energy independence.
Electric Vehicle (EV) Owners
Charging an EV during the free window can dramatically lower transport energy costs—a 7 kW charger running the full three hours draws about 21 kWh, close to the daily cap on its own. Pairing EV charging with free daytime electricity cuts power bills while reducing reliance on petrol.
Smart Homes and Home Offices
Homes with flexible usage can schedule power-hungry appliances—air conditioners, dishwashers, washing machines, or pool pumps—to run during the free hours. Timers and smart controls let households take advantage of the offer without changing daily habits.
Apartment Dwellers and Renters
Not everyone can install rooftop solar. For apartment dwellers and renters, the offer provides rare access to free daytime electricity without upfront installation costs. By shifting cooking, laundry, or device charging to midday, renters can still cut bills even without owning solar panels.
Limitations to Keep in Mind
The offer is appealing, but not every household will automatically maximise the savings. Understanding the limitations matters just as much.
Working Families Can’t Always Shift Usage
Households on a traditional 9-to-5 schedule may find it hard to move usage into the midday window. If appliances can’t be scheduled remotely or automatically, much of the free electricity goes unused and makes little difference to the bill.
Solar Panel Owners May See Less Benefit
Homeowners with solar often already cover most daytime needs, so the free hours may add little extra, unless they can store surplus energy for use during peak hours or low-generation periods.
Higher Peak-Hour Costs in the Evening
To offset the free daytime period, time-of-use rates outside the window can be higher, and daily supply charges still apply. For households that can’t shift and store energy, overall savings aren’t guaranteed: daytime power may be free, but evening energy can cost more.
Grid Demand During the Free Hours
If many households shift usage into the same window, the grid could face midday demand spikes that operators need to manage. This is another reason energy independence matters: solar and storage reduce your reliance on the grid during these periods.
Limited Output in Winter and on Cloudy Days
Solar output depends on the weather. On cloudy days or in winter, panels produce less, so free daytime electricity may not cover all household needs. This is where storage shines—a battery lets you carry surplus energy across low-output periods for consistent savings.
How to Maximise the Offer with a Solar Battery
The free window only lasts three hours, but a battery lets you spread its value across the whole evening. Charge from the free grid electricity during the set hours, then discharge after sunset when time-of-use rates are highest. Instead of buying expensive peak power, you run on energy that costs you nothing, helping you save and increase energy independence.
How to Prepare
Check Your Usage and Your Meter
The offer rewards evening-heavy households most, and you’ll need a smart meter to access these plans.
Compare Plans Carefully
Before you switch, weigh the free hours against the plan’s peak rates and daily supply charge.
Consider a Battery
For serious bill cuts, a home battery is the most effective step to turn the offer into real savings.
Free Power Is a Bonus, Smart Storage Is the Win
Australia's free-electricity offers present a real opportunity for cheaper daytime power, but the full value only lands when you store it. A battery bridges that gap, capturing free midday energy for the evening peak, cloudy days and winter, for more consistent savings whatever the weather. Now is the time to prepare.
Explore the full range of VoltX Energy solar batteries to make the most of the offer!
Frequently Asked Questions
It is a set of opt-in plans giving eligible households three hours of free power in the middle of the day. In NSW, SA and South East Queensland, it's the federal Solar Sharer Offer (from 1 July 2026); Victoria runs its own Midday Power Saver (from 1 October 2026). Both cap the free energy at 24 kWh per day.
Free hours are 11am–2pm in NSW and South East Queensland, and 12pm–3pm in South Australia, starting 1 July 2026. Victoria's window is 11am–2pm from 1 October 2026. Times are local clock time, every day including weekends. Confirm details with your retailer.
For the Solar Sharer Offer, you must live in NSW, SA or South East QLD, have a household smart meter, not be on an embedded network, and be with a retailer required to offer it. Renters and owners both qualify. Victoria residents should ask their retailer for a Midday Power Saver plan from 1 October 2026. WA has no confirmed offer.
No. You don't need rooftop solar or a battery to opt in — any eligible household can use free grid electricity during the set hours. Solar and a battery simply let you capture far more of the value.
Only power used inside the window (up to 24 kWh) is free. You still pay your daily supply charge and for electricity used outside the window, and those rates can be higher on a time-of-use plan. Households with high evening usage save most by storing the free midday energy in a battery.
If you already have solar, your panels likely cover much of your daytime use, so the window may add little on its own. It complements solar best with a battery—you can top up from free grid power on cloudy days and discharge into the evening peak.
A battery stores the free midday energy for use after sunset, when grid rates are highest—turning a three-hour freebie into all-evening savings. It also increases energy independence and helps on cloudy days and in winter. Batteries also help during cloudy days and peak usage times.
The 24 kWh cap comfortably fills a 10 kWh or 20 kWh battery in one window, with room to spare on the smaller unit. A 30 kWh battery reaches about 70–75% from the cap alone, so you'd top up the rest from your own solar. Your inverter and battery also need enough charge power to absorb the energy within three hours.
The free hours are fixed regardless of weather, because the discount applies to grid electricity, not your own solar. But if you rely on rooftop solar to run your home, cloudy days and winter mean lower output—so a battery charged during the free window helps cover those periods.
