AMPAURA AUSTRALIA
NSW Peak Demand Reduction Scheme

What the NSW battery incentive is worth on your site

From 1 September 2026 the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme pays certificates on commercial and industrial batteries. This estimator runs the actual method from the scheme rule, not a rule of thumb. Pick a system from our range, or enter your own numbers, and it will tell you which activity applies, how many certificates it creates, and what those are worth at today's price.

Your system

Every system in this list holds UL 9540A fire testing, which is the certification BESS5 asks for. Choose one and the capacity and inverter fields fill themselves.

Leave at zero if there is no new solar. The scheme pays a higher rate when new solar of at least 1 kW per 4 kWh of battery goes in within 90 days.

Peak Reduction Certificates trade on a market. Around $3.00 at August 2026. Change it to test a different price.

BESS5
$0
Indicative incentive value
Usable capacity, 90% of nominal0 kWh
Capacity the scheme counts0 kWh
Rate applied0.067 kW/kWh
Demand shifting component0 kW
Peak Reduction Certificates0
Get it modelled properly

The method, in full

We publish the working because you should be able to check it. This is the calculation set out in the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme (Amendment No. 2) Rule 2026, which is the instrument that creates BESS4 and BESS5.

  1. Usable capacity is 90% of nominal capacity. The scheme defines it that way.
  2. Counted capacity is the lesser of usable capacity and four hours multiplied by inverter output. For BESS5 it is also capped at 10,000 kWh, so a system larger than that earns nothing extra.
  3. Demand shifting component is counted capacity multiplied by 0.1 kW/kWh where qualifying new solar goes in within 90 days, or 0.067 kW/kWh where it does not. Under BESS4 the first 50 kWh is weighted at half and the next 50 kWh at seven tenths, so small systems earn proportionally less.
  4. Peak demand reduction capacity is the demand shifting component multiplied by a six hour peak window and a fifteen year lifetime.
  5. Certificates are that figure multiplied by your network loss factor and by ten. Ausgrid is 1.04. Endeavour and Essential are 1.05.

BESS4 covers usable capacity above 20 kWh and up to 200 kWh. BESS5 covers above 200 kWh and up to 30 MWh. A site can claim one or the other, once.

Fire testing is already done

BESS5 requires UL 9540A fire testing on the battery. This is where a lot of imported product falls over, and it is not something that can be arranged after the fact. Every system in the list above holds it, so the certification question is settled before you start. Full test reports and certificates go out with the spec pack on request.

What this does not tell you

The certificate count above is arithmetic and we are confident in it. What it is worth to your business is a different question, and this page cannot answer it.

  • Certificate prices float. The number moves with the market between now and the day your certificates are created.
  • The incentive reduces what you pay to install. It does not change what the system saves you every month, which is where most of the return comes from and which depends entirely on your tariff and your load shape.
  • Eligibility has conditions beyond capacity. The checks beside your result are the ones we can test from these inputs. The rest need a look at your site.
  • We have not put a payback figure on this page because that needs your interval data and your quote, and a number invented without both is not worth reading.
The real number

Send us the site and we will model it properly

The estimator above tells you what the scheme pays. It cannot tell you what the system is worth, because that comes from your tariff, your load shape and your worst half hours. Send us twelve months of interval data and we will model the whole case: the incentive, the demand charge reduction, the tariff shifting, and what AI Mode adds on top, with every assumption on the page where your accountant can argue with it.

Same day response on qualified enquiries. Or call Adelaide on (08) 7134 3488 and speak to a person.

Ampaura VAST is certified for BESS4
The RCTerra range is certified for BESS5
Supplied and supported from Adelaide
Designed, managed and optimised via Ampaura Connect (CSIP-AUS Certified)
HubSpot NSW incentive assessment form embeds here. Never a Webflow form. Hidden fields: GCLID, fbclid, li_fat_id, all five UTMs, first page, form name. Also capture the calculator inputs if HubSpot allows: nominal capacity, inverter output, new solar, network.