Vestech, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Solarvest Holdings Berhad, has called on the government to introduce targeted incentives for residential battery energy storage systems (BESS) and extend the SuRIA Home rebate into 2027 to accelerate the adoption of rooftop solar among Malaysian households.
The company said the rising cost of grid electricity and limitations under the current Solar Accelerated Transition Action Programme (Solar ATAP) have strengthened the case for residential battery storage, particularly for households with higher electricity consumption at night.
Under Solar ATAP, exported solar energy is credited only against the Energy Charge component of a household’s Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) electricity bill, providing a narrower offset compared with the previous Net Energy Metering (NEM) arrangement.
Vestech said the Automatic Fuel Adjustment (AFA) surcharge continues to increase the cost of grid electricity, reducing the savings homeowners expect from solar installations.
While Time-of-Use (ToU) tariffs represent a positive step towards more flexible electricity pricing, the company said they offer only limited relief against rising AFA costs.
Vestech said residential BESS is becoming increasingly relevant as it allows households to store excess solar energy generated during the day for consumption at night, reducing their reliance on grid electricity during periods when rooftop panels are no longer generating power.
However, the relatively high upfront cost of battery systems remains a significant barrier to adoption among Malaysian families.
The company proposed introducing targeted government incentives for residential battery storage, similar to the existing SuRIA Home rebate, which offers eligible homeowners financial assistance of up to RM3,000 for residential solar installations.
“Extending similar support to BESS would help address the affordability of adding a battery and encourage wider adoption of solar-plus-storage among Malaysian households,” Vestech said.
The SuRIA Home programme provides rebates of RM600 per kilowatt of installed solar capacity, capped at RM3,000 per household, with applications subject to the programme’s eligibility requirements and allocation.
Beyond battery storage incentives, Vestech urged the government to extend the SuRIA Home rebate into 2027, accompanied by earlier and clearer announcements on funding availability and eligibility timelines.
It said greater policy certainty would allow homeowners and industry players to better plan their investments and installation schedules.
The company also proposed extending individual income tax relief to residential solar and battery installations, drawing on the existing tax incentive framework for qualifying electric vehicle (EV) charging facilities.
Such relief would provide an additional financial incentive for households considering investments in clean energy technologies, particularly those seeking to combine rooftop solar installations with battery storage.
Vestech said a more comprehensive incentive framework covering both solar generation and energy storage would make residential renewable energy systems more accessible to a wider segment of Malaysian households.
The company further urged the government to waive the Energy Efficiency (EE) Incentive backcharge on solar energy exported to the grid.
Vestech argued that homeowners exporting excess solar electricity are contributing to more efficient energy utilisation and supporting the broader transition towards renewable energy.
It said the existing treatment of exported solar units should be reviewed to ensure that the electricity tariff structure does not discourage homeowners from contributing surplus clean energy to the national grid.
