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Commercial solar · Strata and apartments

Solar for strata and apartments: common property and shared batteries

Common property uses power day and night: lifts, corridor lights, pumps, car park ventilation. Solar can offset that, but you need an owners corporation decision, and the rules differ by state.
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Apartment block with solar panels on its flat roof

The short answer

  • Common property usually runs around the clock, so a good share of rooftop solar can be used on site.
  • You need owners corporation approval. Rules on the vote differ by state, so check with your strata manager.
  • NSW has a battery discount for apartment buildings with at least four units, for a shared battery of 20 to 200 kWh. It started on 1 September 2026.
  • Victorian VEU activity 47 does not apply to apartment buildings.
  • Solar Victoria has funded eligible owners corporations on behalf of residents, but its page does not state dates, so check whether it is open.

How apartment buildings use power

The common property meter covers the loads that serve the whole building: lifts, corridor and stair lighting, car park lighting and ventilation, pumps, security systems and common-area air conditioning. Many of these run through the night, so the load is fairly flat across the day and week.

That flat load is good for solar. Because the common property uses power seven days a week, there is less of the weekend gap that hurts offices, and a rooftop array can often be used in full by the building’s own meter. The limit is usually roof space, which is small compared with the number of dwellings, so solar covers only a share of the building’s total use.

Individual apartments have their own meters and bills. Common property solar on its own meter does not reduce those. Systems that feed individual apartments are more complex and depend on how the building is metered, so ask for specific advice. A shared battery on the common property can store daytime solar for the evening peak in lifts and lighting.

Typical sizes

Ranges, not recommendations: your bills, roof and network decide the right size.
Solar
Sized to the common-property load
The roof is shared. Size for what the building meter uses, not what the roof can hold.
Apartment battery in NSW
20 to 200 kWh
For buildings with at least four units (no upper limit on units). The discount applies to a shared battery for common areas.
Under 100 kW
Small-scale STCs
The usual path for most apartment buildings.
Federal battery
5 to 100 kWh
The Cheaper Home Batteries program allows one battery per NMI or commercial sub-meter.

Is it a good fit?

What tends to make it pay

  • A building with high common-property use (lifts, pumps, car park ventilation).
  • A usable, unshaded roof with clear access and no tenancy issues.
  • An owners corporation that is organised and has a sinking fund or a way to fund the work.
  • A strata manager or committee who will manage the process.
  • A shared battery, where the NSW discount applies and the building has an evening load.

Sort these out first

  • The vote needed for solar on common property varies by state. Ask your strata manager or the state’s consumer affairs agency, and check the latest rules.
  • Roof access, waterproofing warranties and liability are common sticking points. Get the installer’s plan reviewed by your building manager.
  • In Victoria, Solar Victoria says you must usually get owners corporation approval, and a special resolution is needed if you receive funding through its Solar for Apartments Program.
  • VEU activity 47 is not available at apartment buildings (Class 2).
  • Solar on the common meter will not reduce individual apartment bills.
  • Embedded networks, where one party on-sells power in the building, change who can benefit. We have not verified the rules, so ask.
  • Fire safety and battery location rules are strict in apartment buildings. A battery in a car park or plant room needs approval.

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.

  • NSW

    NSW apartment battery discount

    For apartment buildings with at least four units (no upper limit), installing a shared battery of at least 20 kWh and no more than 200 kWh of usable capacity. Available from 1 September 2026, with no current closing date. Owners corporations can use it for shared spaces. The NSW page we read does not state a per-dwelling cap.

    Official details

  • Victoria

    Solar Victoria: solar for apartments

    Rebates of up to $2,800 per household for eligible apartments, units and townhouses, paid to eligible owners corporations on behalf of residents. A special resolution is needed to receive funding. The page does not state application dates or whether funding is open, so check before planning around it.

    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

    Federal STCs for systems up to 100 kW

    Small-scale systems get 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 5-year deeming period.

    Official details

A 15 kW system on the common property of an apartment building, estimate only

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

Assumptions

  • Common property using 25,000 kWh a year, with half of that running around the clock (lifts on standby, corridor and stair lighting, pumps) and the rest from 6am to 10pm.
  • Postcode in solar zone 3, installed in November 2026, so 5 years of small-scale STCs at $35 each.
  • Installed price $1,100 per kW before certificates, excluding GST (the calculator’s default for systems up to 30 kW).
  • Grid energy at 25 c/kWh excluding GST, exports at 3 c/kWh, prices rising 2.5% a year, panels declining 0.5% a year, maintenance $12 per kW a year.
  • No battery, finance or tax effects, and no cost for owners corporation approval, strata manager fees or roof works.

What it works out to

  • Output: about 20,700 kWh in year one, with the model expecting about 64% (about 13,200 kWh) used on site.
  • Cost: $16,500 before certificates. About 103 STCs are worth about $3,600 at $35, leaving a net cost of about $12,900.
  • Year-one saving: about $3,500, a simple payback of about 3.9 years. Over 25 years, the model gives an internal rate of return around 28% and a net present value around $33,000 at a 7% discount rate.
  • That is a saving for the owners corporation as a whole, spread across all lot owners through levies. It does not change any apartment’s own bill.
Run your own numbers

An estimate from the Solar Retailers commercial solar calculator, not a quote. Costs for access, waterproofing, switchboard upgrades and meter changes in apartment buildings can be significant and are not included.

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 apartment buildings, and can you work with the owners corporation and strata manager through the vote?
  2. What do you need from the owners corporation to quote, and what paperwork will they get?
  3. Who is responsible for roof waterproofing, and what does the warranty cover?
  4. How is the system connected, to the common property meter only or to individual apartments?
  5. How will you manage access, scaffolding, lift use and noise for residents?
  6. If a battery is proposed, where will it go, and what fire safety and building approvals does it need?
  7. Is the building on an embedded network, and what does that change?
  8. Who monitors and maintains the system, and what does the owners corporation pay each year?

Guides for this decision

Other types of business

Questions

Does solar on the common property reduce my own power bill?
No. It reduces the common property’s electricity cost, which is shared by owners through levies. Your apartment’s own meter and bill are separate.
What vote does an owners corporation need?
It depends on the state and on the type of work. In Victoria, Solar Victoria says a special resolution is required if you are receiving funding through its apartments program. Check the current rules with your strata manager or your state’s consumer affairs agency.
Can an apartment building get a battery discount?
In NSW, buildings with at least four units can get a discount on a shared battery of 20 to 200 kWh, available from 1 September 2026. The federal Cheaper Home Batteries program also allows one battery per NMI or commercial sub-meter.
Can my building use the Victorian business solar incentive?
No. VEU activity 47 excludes apartment buildings (Class 2). Check Solar Victoria for programs that apply to owners corporations.

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?

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