How apartments and renters can plug into solar, if the rules change
Tue Feb 03 2026
Apartment residents are largely shut out of Australia’s rooftop solar advantage, with only 3.5% of apartments having solar. In this episode of SwitchedOn Australia, we explore whether balcony solar could change that by allowing apartment owners and renters to plug into cheap, clean power without owning a roof. Brent Clark, CEO of Wattblock, explains why balcony solar has taken off overseas — particularly in Germany, where more than a million plug-in systems now hang from balconies — and why regulation, not technology, is the real barrier. Australia’s safety rules, metering requirements and strata laws make balcony solar that much harder here. So what needs to change for it to work safely and fairly in Australia, and enable gigawatts of untapped solar potential sitting on apartment buildings to be realised.
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Apartment residents are largely shut out of Australia’s rooftop solar advantage, with only 3.5% of apartments having solar. In this episode of SwitchedOn Australia, we explore whether balcony solar could change that by allowing apartment owners and renters to plug into cheap, clean power without owning a roof. Brent Clark, CEO of Wattblock, explains why balcony solar has taken off overseas — particularly in Germany, where more than a million plug-in systems now hang from balconies — and why regulation, not technology, is the real barrier. Australia’s safety rules, metering requirements and strata laws make balcony solar that much harder here. So what needs to change for it to work safely and fairly in Australia, and enable gigawatts of untapped solar potential sitting on apartment buildings to be realised.