Essential Energy · Default · Low voltage · 2026–27
Regional, rural and remote NSW, including most areas outside the major coastal networks.
BLNBSS1 LV Small Business TOU — Sun Soaker tariff guide
Who it’s for
Small businesses connected at low voltage using no more than 160 MWh a year with a smart meter.
What you pay
You pay different energy rates at different times. Check the current time periods and seasonal rules.
If you get solar
Solar reduces grid use while it is generating. Its value depends on the energy rate at that time.
If you get a battery
A battery can move energy to a more expensive period. Use actual retailer prices and allow for battery losses.
Check before you decide
Confirm this code on a current retailer bill.
Use the retailer prices, not only the network price list.
Measure the energy that can move between time periods.
2026–27 network prices
What it costs, and when
These are the network’s charges only. Your retailer adds its own prices on top.
BLNBSS1 in one day
Peak rateSun SaverPeak rate
12am10am3pm12am
Sun Saver runs 10am–3pm every day. The peak rate applies at other times.
What the network charges
Access
$2.3784/day
Peak
18.9741 c/kWh · Every day outside 10am–3pm
Sun Saver
8.5988 c/kWh · Every day, 10am–3pm
When the rates apply
Sun Saver runs from 10am to 3pm every day. The peak rate applies at other times. Interval meters use daylight saving time.
Illustrative example
Move 1,000 kWh into the Sun Saver period
All 1,000 kWh moves from the peak rate to 10am–3pm.
The example uses network rates only.
It ignores battery losses and retailer pricing.
The published network charge falls by about $103.75: 1,000 × (18.9741 − 8.5988) cents.
This is not a retail-bill saving quote. A battery delivers less energy than it charges.
Would a battery help?
A guide, not a quote
Conditional fit
Time-of-use load shifting
The tariff provides a time-window signal rather than a demand target. Battery value depends on a repeatable price spread, sufficient cycling volume and a control system that preserves energy for the expensive window.
A battery can reduce these
Peak-period grid imports shifted into a cheaper network or retailer window.
Solar generation carried into later business load.
Retailer energy exposure where its time periods align with battery dispatch.
A battery can’t change these
Daily access, metering and other fixed charges.
A network demand charge where none is included in this tariff.
Energy already consumed directly from solar without incurring battery losses.
You’d need to check
At least 12 months of interval usage and export data grouped by tariff window.
Both retailer and network time periods and rates.
Solar production, operating hours and seasonal load changes.
Round-trip efficiency, usable capacity, cycling and degradation assumptions.