The Clean Energy Regulator has permanently suspended a solar retailer from the SRES, with a 60-day review right. Here's what was published, and what a proper battery quote shows.
You've decided a home battery makes sense for your place. You've seen the ads and collected a quote or two. Now there's a news story about a solar retailer losing access to the federal rebate scheme.
That kind of story can make the whole process feel harder than it should be. You shouldn't need to be an investigator to buy a battery. The good news is that the rebate scheme already sets out what a proper job looks like, and a proper installer shows you all of it in writing.
On 11 November 2026, the Clean Energy Regulator (CER) announced that it had permanently suspended Sydney-based solar retailer 1 Solar Australia Pty Ltd, trading as Solar Power Nation, as a registered person under the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES).
The CER said it is no longer satisfied that the company meets the fit and proper person requirements. As a result, the company can no longer operate as a registered agent under the SRES or create small-scale technology certificates (STCs).
The CER also stated that the company has been expelled as an approved seller under the New Energy Tech Consumer Code (NETCC), and that the Commissioner for Consumer Affairs in South Australia has issued a Public Warning Notice.
The company has 60 days to request a review of the CER's decision.
RenewEconomy reported on the same day that, according to the Public Warning Notice, South Australia's Consumer and Business Services recorded 94 consumer complaints between July 2025 and April 2026 against the company or related entities.
RenewEconomy reported that those complaints related to the supply and installation of solar and battery products. They ranged from failing to arrange installation and delivery through to installations that did not work as intended or stopped working.
The CER's chair, Tony Chappel, said that since the SRES began over a decade ago there have been isolated incidents of businesses failing to meet consumer expectations. RenewEconomy also noted the retailer had been promoted by well-known sporting figures. A familiar face in an ad tells you nothing about how the job will be done.
The federal battery discount works through STCs. When an eligible system is installed, certificates are created and traded, and that value usually comes off your price as an upfront discount.
Registered persons in the SRES must keep meeting ongoing fit and proper person requirements. The CER describes these as having "the necessary skills, capability, competency, good business practices, integrity and good character". When the CER decides those requirements are no longer met, it can stop a business creating certificates.
Under the Cheaper Home Batteries Program, the government describes the discount as around 30% off the upfront cost of an eligible battery. The amount for your home depends on the battery's usable capacity, the installation date and the property meeting the current rules. The published certificate factor is scheduled to step down from 6.8 to 5.7 on 1 January 2027, as part of a regular schedule that keeps stepping down to 2030.
For how size and timing feed into that number, see how battery size and installation date affect the federal discount.
You don't need to run a background check. A proper installer puts the important parts of the job in front of you, in writing, before any work starts.
1. An accredited installer on site. The battery is designed and installed by a Solar Accreditation Australia (SAA) accredited installer with battery endorsement, who is on site for set-up, installation and commissioning. The rebate rules require it. More on why in your rebate depends on who's actually on your roof.
2. A written quote showing the discount and how it's applied. The quote shows the rebate as its own line, how it was calculated, and when and how you receive it, so the final price isn't a surprise.
3. A listed product. The battery model on the quote appears on the Clean Energy Council's approved battery list, which the scheme requires, and on-grid systems are technically capable of joining a virtual power plant (VPP), though joining one is your choice. See how to check the exact product on your quote is approved.
4. The warranty in writing. A proper installer sets out the manufacturer's product warranty, the workmanship cover, who looks after service, and registers the product warranty in your name at handover.
5. Sizing from your meter data. The battery size comes from your own evening and overnight usage, matched to your solar and inverter, not from the largest system the rebate will pay towards. See sizing a home battery from evening and overnight meter data.
The CER says that if you have a complaint about your solar retailer, concerns about your installation, or suspect fraud or non-compliance, you should report it to the regulator. Your state's consumer protection agency is another avenue. This article is general information, not legal advice.
Most of the industry does this properly, and the regulator has shown it will act when a business doesn't. Your part isn't to investigate. It's to expect a quote that shows the accreditation, the product, the discount, the warranty and the sizing behind it.
When you're ready, start with your own usage data and a written quote that sets out each of these five things.
Sources: Clean Energy Regulator media release, 11 November 2026: https://cer.gov.au/news-and-media/media/2026/november/1-solar-australia-solar-power-nation-suspended-sres. Joshua S Hill, RenewEconomy, 11 November 2026: https://reneweconomy.com.au/solar-retailer-fronted-by-former-australian-cricket-captain-suspended-from-federal-rebate-scheme/. Program details: Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Cheaper Home Batteries Program, and CER Solar batteries guidance.
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