29 October 2026, 8 mins
If you have solar, the way your electricity is priced is starting to change, and it begins with your network tariff. It is a term that trips people up, because it sounds like it might be the rate your energy retailer charges you. It is not. So, before we get to what is changing, here’s a quick overview on what a network tariff actually is.
Your network tariff is a pass-through charge from your local network (the distributor that owns the poles and wires in your area) to carry electricity to and from your property. It is one part of your bill, separate from your retailer’s energy rate.
Everyone is on a network tariff, whether they realise it or not. What is changing is the type of network tariff some networks now offer: a growing number are moving to a two-way tariff structure.
A traditional network tariff only prices one direction: the power you use from the grid. Sending your solar back to the grid was free, and you earned a feed-in tariff for it from your retailer.
A two-way tariff adds a price on the export side too. It does two things:
So instead of every exported kilowatt-hour being worth the same, when you export now matters.
There is a lot of rooftop solar, and most of it exports at the same time, in the middle of a sunny day. For some networks that midday flood is now more than the local grid can comfortably take. Rather than spend heavily on new infrastructure, networks are using price signals to nudge some of that export out of the midday peak and into the evening, when demand is high and solar has dropped off. A two-way tariff is that price signal.
How it works: the two parts
The exact windows and rates vary by network, but the shape is the same everywhere:
Availability depends on your distribution network (the poles-and-wires company for your area, not your retailer). The table below shows where things stand across the National Electricity Market. Rows shaded red are networks that do not yet offer a residential two-way tariff.
| State | Network (DNSP) | Status | Evening export reward | Midday export charge | Free daily export allowance |
| VIC | AusNet | Available | 10c/kWh, 4-9pm, all year | 1c/kWh, ~10am-3pm | – |
| VIC | Jemena | Available | 15c/kWh, 4-9pm, all year | 3c/kWh, ~10am-3pm | – |
| VIC | CitiPower | Available | 7c/kWh, 4-9pm (summer & winter) | 1c/kWh, ~10am-3pm | – |
| VIC | Powercor | Available | 7c/kWh, 4-9pm (summer & winter) | 1c/kWh, ~10am-3pm | – |
| VIC | United Energy | Available | 7c/kWh, 4-9pm (summer & winter) | 1c/kWh, ~10am-3pm | – |
| NSW | Ausgrid | Available (mandatory) | ~3.9c/kWh, evening | ~1.2c/kWh, midday | check tariff (EA029) |
| NSW | Endeavour Energy | Available | up to 11.7c/kWh, evening, business days | 1.86c/kWh, midday | yes (check amount) |
| NSW | Essential Energy | Available | 11.72c/kWh, 5-8pm, daily | 0.83c/kWh, 10am-3pm | 7.5 kWh/day |
| QLD | Energex (SE Qld) | Trial | 12.20c/kWh, 5-8pm (Nov-Mar) | 2.43c/kWh, 10am-1pm (Apr-Oct) | free 10-11am |
| QLD | Ergon (regional Qld) | None | – (flat QCA feed-in only, ~6c) | – | – |
| SA | SA Power Networks | Available | 13.22c/kWh, 5-9pm (Nov-Mar) | 1.1c/kWh, 10am-4pm | 9 kWh/day |
| TAS | TasNetworks | None (residential) | – (storage/farm trials only so far) | – | – |
| ACT | Evoenergy | None | – (not yet offered) | – | – |
Most households are on a single-rate plan today: one flat import rate all day, and a flat feed-in tariff for whatever solar you export, whenever you export it. Here is how that stacks up against a two-way tariff for a solar household.
| Single-rate tariff | Two-way tariff | |
| Import price | Flat, same all day | Often time-of-use: cheaper midday, dearer in the evening peak |
| Export midday | Free, earns your flat feed-in tariff | Small network charge above the free allowance, plus your feed-in tariff |
| Export 4-9pm | Just your flat feed-in tariff | Your feed-in tariff PLUS a network reward (around 10-15c/kWh) |
| Best suited to | Homes that export whenever the sun is out | Homes that can shift export to the evening, i.e. battery owners |
A worked example (illustrative): say you can move 15 kWh of export from the middle of the day into the evening window.
Same energy, roughly 2 to 3 times the value, purely from exporting it at a different time. The catch is that you need to be able to shift it, which is exactly what a battery does: hold your solar through the midday charge window, then discharge and export in the evening reward window. Without a battery you export whenever the sun is shining, so you miss most of the evening upside and can be exposed to the midday charge.
If you have solar and a battery, a two-way tariff is usually worth it, because you can time your export to catch the evening reward and sidestep the midday charge. If you have solar but no battery, it is more of a wash and depends on your usage and network. And in some states there is nothing to switch to yet.
The figures move around by network and change over time, so the real answer depends on your distribution network, your plan, and how you use power.
Not for most Queensland homes yet. In regional Queensland (Ergon) there’s no residential two-way tariff at all. In south-east Queensland, Energex is trialing one, but spots are limited and the trial is currently full, so most SEQ solar homes can’t opt in right now. If it reopens or expands, it’s worth another look. Either way, a battery still earns its keep by shifting your own power use into the pricey evening hours.
No. It is set by your local network, the distributor that owns the poles and wires in your area, not by Flow Power. It applies to the electricity you export and sits separately from your retailer’s rates.
Usually very little, if anything. The midday export charge only applies to what you export above a free daily allowance (commonly 7 to 9 kWh a day), and it is only around 1 to 3 cents per kWh. Most households export a normal amount and pay little or nothing.
A battery is what lets you benefit most. It holds your solar through the midday charge window and exports it in the evening, when the network pays a reward (around 7 to 15 cents per kWh on top of your feed-in tariff). Without a battery you export whenever the sun is out, so you miss most of the evening upside.
No. It depends on your distribution network. Most Victorian, NSW and South Australian networks have one; the ACT, Tasmania and regional Queensland do not offer a residential two-way tariff yet, and South-East Queensland (Energex) runs one as a trial. Western Australia is a separate system.
It varies by network. Some are opt-in, and at least one (Ausgrid in NSW) applies it by default. Check your distribution network’s current tariffs, or ask your retailer.