Can you have unlimited solar export in Queensland?

You can have a 10 kW export limit in QLD if you enroll in the 'Dynamic Connections' program.

Flexible exports are available in Queensland, and you can now choose to be part of the scheme. This program is designed to allow customers to export their solar energy without limits, unlike the traditional approach where only 5kW could be exported at any given moment. In some rural or congested networks, lower limits were also applied, with some sites not allowed to export any energy at all.

Ergon Energy and Energex provide a Dynamic Connections program, which allows you to export up to 10 kW of solar power per phase.

Dynamic or flexible exports mean that your solar system can push as much energy as it can manage out into the grid, unless there is a network event or minimum demand emergency. If this happens, Energy Queensland will activate GSD devices to turn systems off and limit exports on flexible connections.

SAPN has implemented the same program in 2023, and so far, the throttle has only been applied a handful of times in any year. They're ahead of the curve on this and have good data already.

It works by the DNSP monitoring the amount of energy generated and the solar being exported and automatically adjusting it to keep the grid balanced.

Unfortunately, there isn't much feedback or many opinions available from those who have applied for this program in Queensland as it is still relatively new. In any case, they aren't looking to fix limits; it's just a control that is more refined than the nasty GSD device.

However, if you decide to apply for this program, you should be able to rest assured that your solar exports will only be throttled when there is a glut of energy and the value is low or even negative.

Going forward, we will see more time-of-use (TOU) pricing, and midday electricity is already very cheap. Therefore, exports are becoming increasingly less important compared to self-consumption, whether it's through a hot water diverter, EV, or just running your air conditioning for free to keep the thermal mass in your house under control.

The best approach is to have many panels on the roof facing east and west so that you can produce a useful yield before 10 am and especially after 3 pm. At my place, that's when the price of grid electricity triples.