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Commercial solar · Farms

Solar for farms: irrigation, dairies and machinery sheds

A farm often has the two things solar likes best: big, empty roofs and heavy daytime loads. The catch is that many farm loads are seasonal, remote or run at night, and the grid connection can be the hard part.
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Farm machinery shed with solar panels on its curved roof

The short answer

  • Solar pays best when the load runs in daylight: irrigation pumps, shed and workshop work, cool rooms and dairy plant after the morning milking.
  • Loads are seasonal. A pump that runs hard in summer saves a lot, but a pump that sits idle for months does not, so look at a full year of bills or meter data.
  • On remote or long rural lines, the network may cap how much you can export or ask for studies. Raise the connection early.
  • A battery can move daytime solar to an evening milking or overnight cooling, but it adds a lot of cost. NSW has a business battery discount and the federal Cheaper Home Batteries program applies to businesses too.
  • Primary producers in Queensland can apply for a QRIDA Sustainability Loan that lists solar among eligible uses.

How a farm uses power through the day and the year

Farms do not have one load profile. A dairy runs around milking times, typically early morning and afternoon, with milk cooling and hot water in between. A cropping or horticulture property may have almost nothing running for months and then irrigation pumps running for long hours in summer. A packing shed or cold store runs refrigeration all day and night. A machinery shed and workshop may only draw power in bursts.

Solar output peaks in the middle of the day and in summer. That lines up well with irrigation and with cooling loads, which work hardest on hot days. It lines up poorly with a milking at 5am and 4pm, or with a pump that runs on a cheap off-peak tariff overnight. Whatever is running when the sun is up is what your solar actually offsets.

Weekends make little difference to a farm, because most farms work seven days. That helps: unlike an office, the load does not fall away on Saturday and Sunday. The real swing is across seasons, so ask your installer to size the system from a full year of interval data, not a single summer bill.

Typical sizes

Ranges, not recommendations: your bills, roof and network decide the right size.
Up to 100 kW
Small-scale STCs
The simplest path. STCs are worth less each year, as the deeming period shortens until the scheme ends in 2030.
100 kW to 1 MW
Mid-scale STCs
Larger sheds, packing houses or irrigation-heavy farms can reach this band. For systems installed from 1 October 2026, a fixed 5-year deeming period applies.
30 to 200 kW in Victoria
VEU activity 47
Eligible at non-residential premises. Ask the accredited person whether your site and structures qualify.
Battery from 20 kWh in NSW
NSW business discount
Batteries from 20 kWh to 30 MWh at non-residential sites. The NSW Government cites a dairy farm example of around $355,000 (battery size not stated).
Battery 5 to 100 kWh
Federal STCs
Counts the first 50 kWh only, with the credit tapering from 14 kWh.

Is it a good fit?

What tends to make it pay

  • Pumping, cooling or processing loads that run in daylight, especially through summer.
  • Large, unshaded shed roofs with good structure and clear of trees and silos.
  • Seven-day operation, so the solar is used every day, not just on weekdays.
  • A tariff with a high daytime energy rate, rather than a cheap daytime tariff.
  • Sheds close to the switchboard, which keeps cabling costs down.
  • Diesel generators that you want to run less. A system designed for it can cut fuel use.

Sort these out first

  • Long rural lines are weak. Voltage rise can trip inverters, and the network may limit export or ask for a study. Check the network’s connection page for systems above 30 kVA.
  • Three-phase supply and transformer capacity can be the bottleneck. A system that your supply cannot carry may need a network upgrade at your cost.
  • Roof condition matters. Old asbestos-cement or corroded roofing may need replacing first, and some insurers have rules about panels on sheds.
  • Dust, bird droppings, hail and bushfire ember exposure affect panels. Ask about hail ratings, cleaning and insurance.
  • Irrigation that runs mostly overnight, or on an off-peak tariff, may gain little from daytime solar without a battery or a change in when you pump.
  • A dairy battery is a large spend. Ask the installer to show the load by half hour and the saving the battery adds beyond the solar alone.
  • Ground-mounted arrays and sheds can trigger planning, native vegetation or bushfire rules. Check with your council early.

Rebates and programs that can apply

Programs change often, so check the official page before you rely on one. Our guide to commercial solar rebates covers every state.

  • Australia

    Federal STCs for systems up to 1 MW

    Systems up to 100 kW get small-scale technology certificates (STCs) for the years left until the scheme ends in 2030. Mid-scale systems (100 kW to 1 MW) installed from 1 October 2026 can claim STCs with a fixed 5-year deeming period; the Clean Energy Regulator said applications would not open until mid to late November 2026. Choosing STCs for a mid-scale system means no REGO certificates during the deeming period.

    Official details

  • NSW

    NSW business battery discount

    From 1 September 2026, non-residential sites in NSW installing a 20 kWh to 30 MWh battery can get an upfront discount in the installer’s quote: indicatively about 30 to 40 per cent with new or additional solar (installed within 90 days either side), or about 20 to 30 per cent for a battery alone. Batteries of 20 to 200 kWh need a minimum payment. Sign the installer’s nomination form before work starts. Data centres and off-grid sites are excluded. It can be combined with the federal programs if you meet both sets of rules.

    Official details

  • Queensland

    QRIDA Sustainability Loan

    For primary producers and commercial wild-catch fishers with an existing Queensland primary production business. Loans are up to $1.3 million each, secured (usually by mortgage), and eligible uses include solar, refrigeration systems, lighting and pumps. Batteries are not mentioned. QRIDA lists $120 million of lending for 2026-27 and says applications are assessed up to 30 June 2027 or until lending is committed.

    Official details

  • Victoria

    Victorian Energy Upgrades: commercial and industrial solar (activity 47)

    An upfront incentive, in Victorian energy efficiency certificates created by an accredited person, for 30 to 200 kW solar at grid-connected non-residential premises. It is not available at apartment buildings. It can sit alongside STCs. Systems above 200 kW are not eligible under this activity.

    Official details

  • Australia

    Cheaper Home Batteries (federal)

    Households and businesses can get STCs for a new battery of 5 to 100 kWh installed with solar of up to 1 MW, but STCs count only the first 50 kWh and taper above 14 kWh. The battery must be on the Clean Energy Council list, installed by an accredited installer with a battery endorsement, and capable of joining a virtual power plant. The per-kWh factor falls in steps: 6.8 until December 2026, then 5.7 from January 2027.

    Official details

  • Australia

    $20,000 instant asset write-off

    From 1 July 2026, small businesses with aggregated turnover under $10 million can deduct the full cost of an eligible asset costing under $20,000 in the year it is first used or installed ready for use. Larger systems can go in the small business pool. This is general information: ask your accountant how it applies to you.

    Official details

A 60 kW system on a dairy shed, estimate only

A worked example, so you can see how the numbers fit together. Yours will differ.

Assumptions

  • Dairy operating seven days a week, about 5am to 7pm, using 90,000 kWh a year, with 35% of that running around the clock (cooling and hot water).
  • Postcode in solar zone 3, installed in November 2026, so 5 years of small-scale STCs at $35 each (the calculator’s default).
  • Installed price $1,050 per kW before certificates, excluding GST (the calculator’s default for 30 to 100 kW, derived from Solar Choice’s September 2026 survey).
  • Grid power at 25 c/kWh excluding GST, exports paid 3 c/kWh, prices rising 2.5% a year, panels losing 0.5% a year, maintenance $12 per kW a year.
  • No battery, demand charges, finance, tax effects or network costs. The calculator leaves these out on purpose.

What it works out to

  • Output: about 82,900 kWh in year one, of which the model expects about 66% (about 55,000 kWh) to be used on site.
  • Cost: $63,000 before certificates. About 414 STCs, worth about $14,500 at $35, leave a net cost of about $48,500.
  • Year-one saving: about $14,600, giving a simple payback of about 3.5 years. Over 25 years, the model gives an internal rate of return around 30% and a net present value around $142,000 at a 7% discount rate.
  • The result depends on the share you use on site. Check it against your own interval data before you sign.
Run your own numbers

This is an estimate from the Solar Retailers commercial solar calculator, not a quote. Real prices, STC values, usage patterns and connection costs differ, and it leaves out inverter replacement.

Questions to ask an installer

Ask every installer the same questions so the quotes compare like for like. More in how to choose a commercial solar installer.
  1. Have you installed on farms like mine, and can I speak to one? How do you handle hail, dust and bushfire risk?
  2. What has the network said about export limits or studies for my line and transformer, and who pays for any upgrade?
  3. Can you size the system from a full year of interval data rather than a single bill, including my busiest irrigation months?
  4. How will you protect the system on a long, weak line, and what happens when voltage rises on a hot day?
  5. If I add a battery, what does it add beyond solar alone, and what does each extra dollar saved cost?
  6. Can the design cut generator running, and does it need a different protection setup?
  7. Have you checked the roof structure, asbestos and insurance, and what happens to the roof warranty?
  8. Who claims the certificates, and do you pass the full value through in the price?

Guides for this decision

Other types of business

Questions

Does solar work for a dairy that milks early and late?
Partly. Milking at dawn and late afternoon falls outside peak sun, but cooling, hot water, wash-down and pumps often run through the day. A battery can shift some solar into the evening milking, but ask for an analysis of what the battery adds on top of the solar.
Can I get a battery rebate on a farm?
In NSW, non-residential sites can get the business battery discount for batteries of 20 kWh to 30 MWh, and the NSW Government cites a dairy farm example of around $355,000. The federal Cheaper Home Batteries program also covers businesses for batteries of 5 to 100 kWh. Check the rules for each before you buy.
Will my network let me connect a big system?
It depends on your line, your transformer and the network’s own rules, and larger systems usually go through a negotiated connection. Ask your installer to lodge the enquiry early, and read your network’s connection page.
Is there farm-specific funding?
In Queensland, QRIDA’s Sustainability Loan lists solar among eligible uses for primary producers. We did not verify farm-specific grants in other states as of 31 October 2026, so check with your state agriculture agency and the business.gov.au grants finder.

Sources

Checked 31 October 2026. This page is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice. Rules, rebates and prices change, so check the sources before you decide.

Ready to compare real numbers?

Run your own figures first, then ask at least three accredited installers to quote on the same brief. Quotes are free and you’re under no obligation.

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