Who approves a commercial solar connection?
Victoria has five electricity distribution businesses. Your distributor owns and operates the local poles and wires, and it is the distributor that assesses the connection of solar to its network.
Victoria's electricity distributors
- CitiPower: Melbourne CBD and inner suburbs.
- Powercor: western Melbourne and western Victoria.
- United Energy: southern and south-eastern Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula.
- Jemena: northern and north-western Melbourne.
- AusNet: outer northern and eastern Melbourne plus much of eastern Victoria.
Your electricity retailer sends the bill. The distributor decides the technical conditions for connecting generation to the local network.
Why commercial connection work starts early
Small residential systems can often use streamlined connection pathways. Commercial projects are more likely to need a negotiated connection, particularly as inverter capacity rises or the site connects at higher voltage.
The distributor may need technical information about the inverter, protection settings, export controls, switchboard, transformer, proposed operating mode and the site's existing connection.
Network assessment can change the system design. That is why a commercial provider should not treat connection approval as paperwork to deal with after the equipment has been sold.
For example, CitiPower and Powercor publish several embedded-generation pathways, including low-voltage and high-voltage negotiated connections. Their connection material also distinguishes larger three-phase inverter systems from basic micro-generator connections.
A 200 kW system does not automatically have a 200 kW export limit
System size, inverter capacity and approved export capacity are different things.
A business may be allowed to install a large solar array but have a lower export limit. In that case the site can still use solar behind the meter, while controls prevent exports from exceeding the approved level.
Whether that is a good outcome depends on the load profile. A factory that consumes most solar production on site may barely notice a modest export limit. A warehouse with low daytime demand may lose much more value if a large part of its potential generation has nowhere useful to go.
Ask the provider to model the actual proposed export limit. A financial model that assumes unlimited exports before network approval is not complete.
Victoria's solar emergency backstop
Victoria's emergency backstop applies to new rooftop solar systems up to and including 200 kW, as well as some legacy systems when an inverter is replaced.
For affected systems, the inverter must support remote management so the distributor can reduce or switch off solar generation during a rare grid emergency. A reliable internet connection is generally part of the requirement.
This is a last-resort grid safety mechanism, not normal daily solar curtailment. The equipment and commissioning still need to meet the distributor's backstop process.
What should the proposal say about network connection?
- Name the electricity distributor for the site.
- State the proposed inverter capacity and export limit.
- Explain whether the connection is expected to be basic or negotiated.
- Identify any network application, study or design fees included in the price.
- State who prepares protection studies, single-line diagrams and engineering documents where required.
- Explain what happens to the price and projected savings if the approved export limit is lower than expected.
- Confirm responsibility for emergency backstop compliance on systems covered by the Victorian rules.
If the network offer materially changes the economics, the business should have a chance to review the project before equipment is committed.
Sources and further reading
Source labels identify who published each reference, not an independent endorsement. Confirm current requirements and exact product terms before purchasing.
- Government source
- Government source
- Industry price index
- Industry price index