Distribution network service providers, or DNSPs, own the poles and wires. They decide whether a new generator can connect to the grid and on what terms, such as export limits. The Clean Energy Regulator decides whether certificates can be created. These are separate regimes, and installers mix them up.
Before or after installation?
Approvals typically come in two flavours:
- Apply first, then install. Most networks expect an application before you connect, especially for larger systems, three-phase supply, batteries or anywhere with export constraints. Installing first and asking later risks a refusal or a costly redesign.
- Notify after. Some networks allow small, standard systems to be installed and then notified, using a simpler process.
The correct approach depends on the network and the system size. See the network-by-network page for the main distributors, and always confirm on the network’s own portal.
How it touches an STC claim
Network approval is not an item the Regulator treats as a condition for creating certificates in the way it treats accreditation, product eligibility and the 12 month rule. But it affects the claim in practice:
- Compliance. The installation must meet the rules that apply to it, and network connection is one. If an auditor finds a system connected against the network’s conditions, that is a bad conversation.
- Evidence. Some traders ask for the approval reference as part of their compliance check. A reference shows the system was approved at the size and settings you claimed.
- Customer outcome. If the system is not allowed to export, or must be limited, the customer experience, and your complaint rate, changes.
- Timing. A job waiting for network approval is a job whose claim is waiting. That matters for the 12 month window and your cash flow.
The approval number on the paperwork
Many installers ask where the connection approval number goes. It sits on the job record, may appear on the electrical certificate or the network’s notification, and is something a trader’s checklist can request. If your network issues a reference at application, record it at once. Details are on the connection approval number page.
From the desk: do not take the customer’s word that they have “sorted it with the network”. Get the approval reference or a screenshot of the submitted application before the crew arrives.
Export limits and sizing
Approvals can come with conditions, such as a maximum export of a few kilowatts or a requirement for a certain inverter setting. Design to the approval, not the other way round. See export limits by state.
What this means for installers
Build the network application into the sales process, track it as a status on each job and do not schedule installs until you have the right answer for that network. A compliance desk that asks for the approval reference before lodgement turns a customer complaint into an internal check. See how it works, STC trading and the resources hub.