Since the end of the NSW Government’s Feed-in Tariff program in December 2016 prices for solar energy exported from residential solar to the grid have plummeted.

Under the previous scheme solar owners were paid between 40 and 60 cents per Kw by the government but after the end of the scheme, they’ve been receiving what the energy retailers are willing to pay.

“Rooftop solar benefits the whole community but solar owners have been getting a raw deal from retailers who can pay them next to nothing for the clean power they produce,” campaigner Shani Tager said.

“It’s time solar owners got a fair price for their power.

“The South Coast has plenty of sun and more and more households and small businesses are putting on solar to take back control of their electricity bill and generate clean energy.

“These solar owners are losing out because of the government’s hands-off approach to solar.

“We’ll be working with the 1 in 5 voters across the Kiama and South Coast state electorates who have solar, to make sure that local state MPs are doing everything they can to get a fair price for what they’re exporting to the grid.”

The Fair Price For Solar campaign is being run across NSW by Solar Citizens.

Its focus is to put pressure on members of NSW Parliament who represent areas with high rooftop solar penetration, like the Kiama electorate where 17 per cent of people have solar on their roof.

A bill for a mandatory minimum feed-in tariff will be introduced to NSW Parliament by Jeremy Buckingham MLC today.

Kiama MP Gareth Ward is yet to indicate whether he supports the bill.