The SolShare is the world’s first solution to connect rooftop solar directly to apartments within the same building. Finally, there’s an opportunity for apartment owners to enjoy the numerous benefits of solar power, including: reduced electricity bills, energy independence, and lower carbon footprint.
Apartment Owners
Solar for apartments
The SolShare monitors when an apartment is using energy and will direct solar power to it to reduce electricity bills as much as possible. This optimisation can increase the amount of solar you use by up to 50%, meaning less reliance on expensive grid power and higher savings.
How SolShare works
The SolShare is a distribution box that can direct solar energy to multiple apartments behind-the-meter simultaneously. It optimises the solar delivery based on who needs the energy at any point in time, while also ensuring that every apartment receives the same amount of solar over the course of each month.
Benefits for you
Reduced Electricity Bills
The SolShare can reduce
electricity bills by up to 40%
– and even more with batteries
Optimised System
Every apartment receives the
same amount of solar but it’s
automatically delivered when it’s
going to save the most money.
Reduced Carbon Footprint
Whenever you’re using solar, less
carbon emissions are being
pumped into the atmosphere
Increased Property Value
Installing solar on your home is
proven to increase its value
Flexibility
Not every apartment has to sign up
How do I get a SolShare System?
There are 2 different methods of buying the system and getting a SolShare system installed on your building.
Community-owned shared solar
You and your neighbours buy into the SolShare system together and enjoy free solar energy whenever you use it, saving up to 40% on your energy bills.
The SolShare will ensure that the same amount of solar is delivered to each apartment over the course of each month but it will deliver the solar when you need it, saving up to 50% more than if you had an individual system.
As a guide price, the system will likely cost between $2,000 – $3,000 per apartment. If you’re interested in this option, one of the most important steps is to speak with your neighbours about the solution, let them know the rough cost and understand the level of interest as early as possible.
The system is owned by the owners corporation.
Benefits:
• Some or all of the owners can buy into the system, bypassing the naysayers
• The common light and power can also be connected, to save there too
• Optimised and even solar delivery – saving you the most amount of money
Solar + Grid energy package – no upfront cost
Your Owners Corporation signs up the supply of common light and power to one of our energy retailer partners. The energy retailer partner will then install a SolShare solar system at no upfront cost.
Any resident that signs up to the retailer will not only get solar without having to pay for the hardware, but will experience the convenience of having one bill for grid electricity and solar.
The system is owned and maintained by a specialise energy retailer.
Benefits:
• No upfront cost to the residents
• Opt-in basis
• No long-term contracts for the residents
• Cheaper electricity bills and lower your carbon footprint
How to get a SolShare system through Capex
Case studies
Bulimba, Queensland
Waterline Crescent apartments is an airy strata-titled apartment complex of 18 residences overlooking the Brisbane River just northeast of the Brisbane CBD. The body corporate decided to retrofit solar panels to improve the sustainability of the building, and chose Allume’s SolShare technology to connect solar to each apartment.
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Brunswick East, Victoria
This mixed-use building comprises eight apartments and two ground-floor shops which all share one rooftop solar installation.
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RENU Housing, Orlando
Canopy Apartments is a 296-unit, garden-style multi-family apartment complex in Orlando that embraced smart energy technologies including shared solar. The technology will maximize solar energy available for connected tenants and accelerate the transition to a carbon-neutral built environment, supporting RENU Communities’ mission of decarbonizing the built environment.
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Botany, New South Wales
Botany Apartments is a community comprising 23 upmarket townhouses and 4 apartments that embraced smart energy technologies including shared solar.
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Bayview, New South Wales
This apartment complex comprising multiple buildings overlooks beautiful Pittwater in Sydney’s north. In 2020 the apartment community decided to install rooftop solar to reduce electricity bills and dependence on the grid.
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Frequently Asked Questions
The SolShare distributes solar energy behind-the-meter, just like an individual system does with a standalone home. This means that it doesn’t interfere with existing metering infrastructure, making it affordable, technically viable, and unintrusive.
There are a number of factors in determining this, the main one being how much energy you use. But on average, a 40% reduction in grid energy usage can be achieved. This is increased further if batteries are included. See our cases studies for more information on price and payback.
No. The beauty of the SolShare is that it can be connected to whoever is interested. So, if there are 30 apartments but only 15 want solar, the 15 of you can buy your own SolShare solar system. The most important thing to do is speak to the other owners as soon as possible to see who is interested.
This is a tricky one… They can sometimes. It all depends on if there are any spare connections left. The best solution is for everyone who’s interested to join the system at the beginning.
Yes, any connection can be added to a SolShare system, including the common light and power.
The SolShare comes with an industry standard 10-year warranty.
The SolShare delivers solar under a ‘fair-share’ algorithm. The SolShare monitors how much energy each apartment is using (energy demand) and sends solar to where it’s needed, maximising the savings for everyone in the building. However, to make sure that everything’s fair, the SolShare logs how much solar’s been delivered to each unit and if it identifies that a unit has received more than the others it will start to reduce the amount of solar that it sends to that unit until the others have caught up.
Yes. Every resident will be able to access a portal that shows their energy and solar usage. This can help to adjust habits to maximise the benefits of the solar energy and reduce bills even further.
No. Every portal is private.
Yes, the SolShare system can be installed on an embedded network.
Yes, batteries can be included in the system. Even better, because the SolShare is a shared system, your batteries will also be shared. This means that rather than needing to buy an expensive battery for every connected unit, you simply by a communal battery that everyone uses when they need it. This greatly increases their value for money.
Every SolShare installation is unique. Once we have gained the relevant information from you, we will introduce you to one of our certified SolShare installation partners. They will be able to talk you through what is most suitable for your building.
Typically, the SolShare is suitable for apartment buildings that have between 6 and 60 apartments. However, there are some cases when it is possible to get a shared solar system for buildings over 60 units if not everyone wants to sign up or it’s a complex with 2 or more buildings. Send us an enquiry and we will be happy to see if our technology is suitable for your apartment building.
If your electricity meters are all located in one location on common property, then yes you can. If your electricity meter is located within your townhouse then, unfortunately, you can’t use a SolShare system. All is not lost though because with a meter inside your building, you should be able to install your own private solar system.
The main switchboard is the place in your building where the energy from the grid is divided up and sent to your apartments. It’s typically located in the same place or very close to your electricity meters and is usually labelled.
As with all solar installations, every connected unit must have a smart electricity meter. If the apartments don’t have smart meters, don’t worry. Our certified SolShare Installation Partners will be able to guide you through upgrading. Residents can also contact their energy retailer directly and upgrade the meters in advance.
Every connected unit will receive feed-in tariff payment for any solar they don’t use.
The SolShare ensures that the same quantity of solar is delivered to each connected unit over the course of each month. It works hard to deliver each unit’s solar when they are using power and therefore when they’re going to save the most amount of money. However, if this is not possible and more solar is being delivered than can be consumed then it will be exported to the grid and your retailer will buy it off you.
The Australian government subsidy applicable to an apartment building is the STC program. It’s averaged across the country and the rebate is currently worth around $600 per kW of solar panels you install. Our Solar Installation Partners will include this discount in your quote and apply for the STC on your behalf. That number is reducing every year until it hits $0 in 2031, so the sooner you buy, the more money you’ll save!
There are other rebates available but these vary depending on your location. We strongly recommend researching if there are any grants or funding available in your area.
Installing solar onto an apartment does more than just reduce the electricity bills. Studies have shown that property prices increase significantly when they have solar power. Landlords specifically report having less vacancy and increased longevity of tenants.
No. Residents can stay with their existing retailer, or to choose to change to another one. They can also access any market protections provided for vulnerable electricity customers, if applicable.
Contact us to learn more and get a SolShare.
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