Australia’s energy commission targets lower solar curtailment

<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Australia's Energy Market Commission says introducing a new distribution planning framework and undertaking enhanced data reporting will help to reduce rooftop solar curtailment.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) is proposing to modernize its distribution network planning, which it says will help to lower curtailment of rooftop solar.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A </span><a href="https://www.aemc.gov.au/rule-changes/enhancing-distribution-network-planning-reporting" rel="noopener" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">draft rule</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> released earlier this week proposes to replace the existing distribution annual planning report with a distribution network plan. The plan would be published every five years covering a 20-year timeframe, with distribution network service providers also required to provide concise annual updates.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The commission is also planning to establish a new framework for distribution network data reporting. It says that with rooftop solar, batteries and electric vehicles transforming the distribution networks, in turn creating both opportunities for consumers and challenges for the grid, planning needs to be backed by clearer, more accessible data on how and where these technologies are being used.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Chair of the commission, Anna Collyer, said the reform will give decision-makers across the energy system better information to act earlier.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“With detailed visibility of where solar, batteries and electric vehicles are emerging, distributed network service providers and investors can plan ahead through targeted upgrades or non-network solutions,” Collyer said. “That means fewer constraints, less curtailment of rooftop solar, and ultimately more efficient investment decisions that flow onto everyone’s power bills.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The draft rule also proposes to boost visibility of the low-voltage network, which the commission says will help identify the best stops to install electric vehicle chargers and community batteries.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">AEMC is now seeking stakeholder feedback, with submissions due by 4 June, before publishing a final determination and rule later this year.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The planned reform comes as the rollout of rooftop solar in Australia accelerates, with recent analysis finding Australia’s rooftop solar market </span><a href="https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2026/04/08/rooftop-solar-registrations-reach-record-high-with-race-on-to-make-most-of-battery-subsidy-scheme/" rel="noopener" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">surged 19% last month</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> as consumers race to take advantage of battery subsidies.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A report by the Clean Energy Council found the capacity of Australia’s rooftop solar fleet reached </span><a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/2026/02/04/australias-rooftop-solar-hits-28-3-gw-as-home-battery-uptake-surges/" rel="noopener" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">28.3 GW</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> by the end of last year, with approximately 4.3 million installations across the country. </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Rooftop solar’s </span><a href="https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2026/01/29/rooftop-solar-hits-all-time-output-high-of-4407-mw-in-q4-2025-report/" rel="noopener" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">contribution to Australia’s total electricity generation</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> reached 14.2% in the second half of the year of 2025, up from 13.4% in the same period the previous year.</span></p>
<p>In January, AEMC permitted virtual power plants to <a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/2025/01/09/new-rules-allow-vpps-to-compete-in-australias-energy-market-from-2027/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">compete directly</a> with large-scale generators in Australia's energy market from 2027.</p>