Queensland Household Energy Survey 2023

Solar

Solar PV ownership and intention to upgrade or purchase are both consistent with last year. Those most likely to want to buy solar are younger people (aged 18 to 34), homeowners and those earning higher incomes ($151K or more). Renting is the main barrier to not owning solar PV, followed by affordability.

Most households with solar PV see the importance of maximizing electricity consumption during solar PV generation. In line with this, 69% of respondents with solar PV say they try to use appliances during the day to best utilise their solar PV system.

Around one fifth (18%) of solar PV owners have had their hot water system disconnected from a load control tariff and placed on the same electrical circuit as their PV system, but 40% are unsure if their system has been disconnected from such a tariff. Of those who have had their hot water system disconnected from a load control tariff, the main reasons for doing so included it being better for the environment and more affordable to heat their water at least partly with their PV system.

You can use the dropdowns to explore the results of each section in more detail. For most questions you can view the data by location, age group, solar PV ownership and other household characteristics. You can also select the “Trend” button to see how the overall results have changed over time.