The New South Wales Government has announced it will scrap its plan to significantly reduce allocated tariff cuts after household and business stakeholders have conducted a month-long campaign against the cuts.

 

The Government failed to secure  support from the Christian Democrats and the Shooters and Fishers parties for changes to the solar bonus program that would have seen payments reduced from 60c to 40c per kilowatt put back into the grid.

 

The solar program, started in 2009, attracted 160,000 households, far above the initial estimate, causing the cost of the program to blow out to $1.4 billion.

 

“I wanted to do everything possible to reduce the cost to taxpayers of the solar bonus scheme and keep a lid on electricity prices,” O’Farrell said in the statement today. “However, I am a realist and there is no point putting up legislation to the upper house which is going to be rejected.”

 

The Clean Energy Council, which represents the industry in Australia,  welcomed the decision.

 

“The new government has inherited a difficult situation, but it has honored the investment of solar households,” said Matthew Warren, the group’s chief executive officer.

 

Premier O’Farrell claimed that the planned changes to the tariff scheme would have saved the Government up to $471 million.