• • NSW Commercial lighting deadline looming.
  • SRES Solar Battery Safety and Compliance Report findings released.
  • New photo requirements for solar batteries.
  • LGCs nose-dive once again.
  • VEECs hold firm with minor gains.
  • ESCs steady.
  • PRCs unchanged.
  • ACCUs show some positive gains.
  • STCs now stable after recent falls.

NSW Commercial lighting deadline looming.

The deadline for commercial lighting upgrades under the NSW Energy Savings Scheme is looming, with all projects needing to be fully installed and have ESCs registered by 31 March 2026.

Paperwork for new lighting installs must be provided to Ecovantage by 16 February. Partners unable to meet this deadline should contact Ecovantage as soon as possible.

SRES Solar Battery Safety and Compliance report.

Since 1 July 2025, the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES) has implemented targeted inspections for solar battery installations, which aim to monitor safety standards and improve compliance.

As of 17 December 2025, more than 168,000 batteries have been installed nationwide. Given this rapid uptake, safety remains the paramount consideration for regulators; installers are required to confirm that every installation adheres to all relevant safety and technical standards, and all products must be approved by the Clean Energy Council (CEC). Installations found to be non-compliant face stringent enforcement actions, including the removal of the installing company or individual installer from eligibility under the SRES.

To date, 513 inspections have been conducted, across Victoria, Queensland, NSW, SA and WA. These utilised a detailed checklist of over 90 items, reviewing a total of more than 44,500 individual compliance points.

The findings revealed a high overall compliance rate:

• • 93.2% of items reviewed were fully compliant.
  • 5.4% received recommendations for improvement.
  • 1.4% required mandatory rectification to meet safety and compliance standards.

Installations were assessed based on the severity of issues found, resulting in the following quality ratings:

• • 35.9% of installations met all necessary standards.
  • 63.3% had technical deficiencies but were deemed safe to operate.
  • 0.8% were rated unsafe.

Interestingly all identified issues were related to the installation process, workmanship, or ancillary components, with no faults attributed directly to the batteries themselves.

The insights gathered from the inspection program are driving a multi-faceted approach to continuous improvement in safety and quality, including further monitoring, communicating findings to industry, improvements to training and expanding and tightening compliance requirements.

Solar batteries – new photo requirements.

The aforementioned inspections showed non-compliant labelling is a common issue with battery installs, As a result, new photo requirements for solar battery installations are being introduced from 1 March 2026.

A new Solar battery photo guide is available which details the additional photos required, which complement existing mandatory photos.

Installers must ensure claims:

• • Meet Australian standards.
  • Collect new photos of critical labelling (see checklist).
  • Verify photo compliance.
  • Submit each battery claim separately with the accreditation code in the subject.
  • Provide original photo files.
  • Keep records for five years.

Weekly Market Update | 26 – 30 January 2026

Large-Scale Generation Certificates (LGCs)

Despite the short trading week the LGC market was active, particularly in the second half of the week. The spot price nose-dived once again; steady falls throughout the week culminated in a 25K parcel trading at $5.50 – which was almost 20% lower than the week’s opening.

On the forwards Cal 26, 27 and 28 all saw thin trading. Thursday was the most active day, which prompted significant price falls across all 3 vintages; Cal 26 finished the week at $5.75 down 13%, Cal 27 slipped back 10% to $5.05 and Cal 28 finished the week 4% lower at a lowly $4.30.

LGC prices have been falling consistently over an extended period.

Victorian Energy Efficiency Certificates (VEECs)

It was a week of light trading across the VEEC market – which saw minor losses then gains. At week’s end the price reached as high as $80.75, before settling back to a closing price of $80.40, which still represented a small $0.15 gain across the full period.

The forward markets also saw limited action during the week, with most vintages up to December 26 sitting at or close to the $80 mark. The highest increases were observed in Sep 26 and Oct 26, which both rose by $4.50, bringing them into line with the other 2026 vintages.

Energy Saving Certificates (ESCs)

ESC registrations were on the low side once with just 37,030 certificates registered across the week. Most of these (70%) were under HEER residential and small business activity, with most of the balance (24%) through commercial lighting projects. Registrations for the whole of January are more than 40% lower than the same period last year.

Trading on the spot was light and stable – after edging back slightly by $0.10 mid-week, Thursday saw this small loss reversed with 35k ESCs trading back at $22.75.

The forward markets were whisper quiet, with a small parcel of 15K in Feb 26 exchanging at $22.65 – which was narrowly down by $0.20 on the week’s opening.

Peak Reduction Certificates (PRCs)

PRCs were also quiet this week, with a single 80K trade on the spot market on Wednesday for which the price held firm at $3.00. No trades were reported on the forwards markets, with most vintages continuing to sit around 2-4% lower than the current spot price.

Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs)

The ACCU spot markets edged up again this week with the Generic and “No Avoided Deforestation (No AD)” spots both up by $0.60 to $37.75 and $37.85 respectively. The Generic spot was the most active, with 190K certificates exchanging across the week. And at the beginning of the week the “Human Induced Regeneration (HIR)” spot also stepped up by $0.50 to $37.50 with 3 parcels totalling 85k certificates.

The ACCU forward markets remained quiet for much of the week – with a 30k trade on the No- AD in March 26 trading down by $1.15 to $37.65. In contrast another 75K parcel in March 27 traded at $39.25 – a rise of $1.80.

Small-Scale Technology Certificates (STCs)

STCs had a quiet week, with a solitary trade of 20K certificates exchanging at an unchanged $39.60. Nothing happened on the forward market, with pricing for the next 3 months ($39.50) continuing to sit a shade lower than the spot.

The Clearing House remains in surplus to the tune of 5.8 million certificates, suggesting that pricing will continue to be suppressed in the near term.

Certificates spot prices & graphs available at Market Update >

At Ecovantage, we consistently analyse market activity, policy changes, consultation releases, and creation rates in conjunction with wider landscape activity. This allows us to keep our clients at the forefront of all relevant changes, and to leverage the advantage that this presents. Thank you for your continued support, and please reach out if you have any general or project-specific questions.