Midday Power Saver (VIC) vs Solar Sharer Offer (NSW): What It Actually Means for You
Three hours of free electricity a day sounds like a headline built for skepticism, but Victoria's Midday Power Saver and the federal Solar Sharer Offer are both real, and both about to change how energy retailers bill Victorian and NSW households. Here's what's actually free, what isn't, and how to come out ahead either way.
The Two Schemes at a Glance
These sit alongside other government support already available for solar and battery. See our Rebates & Incentives guide for the full picture.
| Feature | Victorian Midday Power Saver | Federal Solar Sharer Offer (NSW) |
|---|---|---|
| Administered by | Victorian Government | Australian Government (also live in SA and SE Queensland) |
| Start date | 1 October 2026 | Live since 1 July 2026 |
| Free window | 11am to 2pm daily | 11am to 2pm daily in NSW (SA runs 12pm to 3pm) |
| Usage cap | A fair-use cap applies, set by the Essential Services Commission | Capped at 24kWh per day |
| Need solar to join? | No | No |
| The catch | Rates outside the window are set higher to fund it | Rates outside the window are higher; only larger retailers are required to offer it |
Why These Schemes Exist
Both schemes are solving the same problem. Rooftop solar now floods the grid with cheap power in the middle of the day, which pushes wholesale prices down, sometimes below zero, then creates a steep climb back up in the evening once the sun goes down and demand rises. The industry calls this the duck curve. Giving households a reason to use more power in the middle of the day, and less during the evening peak, helps flatten that curve.
That's a genuine grid benefit, not just a marketing angle, but it's also why the trade-off is real. Someone has to pay for the free window, and that cost is built into the rates that apply outside it.
What You're Actually Signing Up For
Neither scheme happens automatically. You need to opt in through your energy retailer, and you'll need a smart meter, an old accumulation meter with spinning discs won't work, since the retailer needs to measure exactly what you use inside the three-hour window.
Your daily supply charge stays exactly the same either way. And because retailers fund the free window by charging more at other times, particularly the evening peak, a household that mostly uses power after work and can't shift much of it could end up slightly worse off rather than better off. It's worth being honest about that before signing up.
How Much Could You Actually Save?
Victorian Government modelling puts household savings between $149 and $428 a year, depending on your living situation and assuming you can shift somewhere between 5% and 30% of your usage into the free window. If you own an electric vehicle, that figure climbs further, an additional $674 a year on top by charging during the free period instead of at peak times, taking the total potential saving to $1,102.
For NSW's Solar Sharer Offer, the mechanics are similar even though there's no equivalent published EV-specific figure yet: a household that can shift a few kilowatt-hours a day into the free period sees a modest but real saving, while a household with a battery sees a larger and more consistent one, since it doesn't rely on someone being home at 11am to run the dishwasher. This is the same logic behind tariffs like Amber, see our dedicated page on Amber for Batteries.
Static Load vs Dynamic Load
The easiest way to think about this is splitting your household power use into two buckets.
Static load: fridges, freezers and standby appliances that run continuously. Leave these alone, there's nothing to shift.
Dynamic load: washing machines, dryers, dishwashers and pool pumps. Set delay timers so these kick in right as the free window opens.
If you work from home, pre-cooling or pre-heating the house during the free window and then turning the climate control off when it ends is one of the highest-impact, lowest-effort changes available under either scheme.
Where a Battery Changes the Whole Equation
A battery is what turns this from a modest, effort-dependent saving into something closer to automatic. If you don't have solar, you can set the battery to charge from the grid during the free window, then run the household off stored battery power once the expensive evening rates kick in, rather than drawing from the grid at the worst possible time.
If you already have solar, the two schemes pair well with your existing setup too: export your solar generation during the day to collect your feed-in tariff as normal, while using the scheme's free grid window to top up the battery, so you're not choosing between exporting and charging.
For more on how to size and choose a battery, see our Battery Storage: The Complete Guide.
Is This Worth Setting Up For Your Household?
It comes down to your usage pattern more than anything else. If you're often home during the day, or can shift a few things without much hassle, both schemes are close to free money. If you're out at work until early evening and struggle to shift much, a battery is what turns this from a maybe into a genuine yes, since it banks the free midday power on your behalf rather than requiring you to be home to use it.
For a general sense of what a battery costs and what affects the price, see our Solar Battery Cost guide.
Get in touch at info@cbrsolar.com and we'll run the numbers on whether a battery makes sense for your specific usage pattern, based on your actual bills rather than a generic estimate.