If you’ve been putting off upgrading your solar, battery, hot water, or air conditioning system because of the upfront cost, the NSW Government just made that decision a lot easier. The Home Energy Saver Program (HESP) is a $557 million initiative designed to help households across New South Wales electrify their homes and slash their energy bills, without the financial sting that usually comes with it.
At Emerald, we help households navigate exactly this kind of opportunity, from working out what you’re eligible for through to installing the products that will actually make a difference to your bills. Here’s everything you need to know about HESP, and why now is the time to act.
What is HESP?
Launched in June 2026, Home Energy Saver Program is the NSW Government’s flagship scheme for helping homeowners, landlords, and renters lower the upfront cost of energy-efficient upgrades. It replaces and expands on the older Empowering Homes Program, with a higher loan cap and a broader income threshold, meaning far more households now qualify.
The program offers two forms of support:
- A zero-interest loan of up to $15,000, repayable over up to 10 years, for eligible energy-saving upgrades.
- A discount of up to $4,000, for lower-income households and eligible concession card holders.
Both can be combined on the same purchase, and for many households the loan repayment ends up costing less each month than what they save on their power bill, meaning the upgrade can effectively pay for itself while you’re still paying it off.
Who qualifies?
Eligibility depends on which type of support you’re applying for:
For the zero-interest loan, you need to:
- Be an owner of the property.
- Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
- Have a combined, annual, taxable household income of up to $210,000.
For the discount, you need to:
- Be an owner-occupier, or a tenant named on the lease (with landlord permission).
- Have a combined household income of up to $80,000, or
- Hold an eligible concession card, such as a Health Care Card, Low Income Health Care Card, Pensioner Concession Card, or Veteran Gold Card.
What products are available under HESP?
This is where the program gets exciting for households wanting to genuinely electrify and modernise their homes. Eligible upgrades include:
- Heat pump water heaters
- Solar water heaters
- Reverse-cycle air conditioners
- Induction cooktops
- Rooftop solar systems
- Residential batteries
- Switchboard upgrades (often needed to support solar, batteries, and EV chargers)
In other words, almost every major upgrade that improves comfort, cuts running costs, and reduces reliance on gas is covered. That’s a genuinely comprehensive list, and it means you can plan a whole-of-home electrification project rather than tackling one appliance at a time.
Why upgrade with Emerald?
Navigating a government scheme like HESP, working out eligibility, comparing finance providers, getting accredited suppliers, and choosing the right products for your home, can be overwhelming if you’re doing it alone. That’s where Emerald comes in.
We work with households across NSW to:
- Assess your eligibility for both the loan and discount, and help you sequence your applications correctly to maximise your funding.
- Recommend the right products for your home’s specific needs, rather than a one-size-fits-all package.
- Install our own products, backed with our own engineering, ready to install our popular efficient products.
We’ve seen firsthand how much of a difference the right upgrade makes, not just to a power bill, but to how a home feels day-to-day. Our job is to make sure you get the outcome that actually suits your household, not just the cheapest box to tick.
Why upgrade your electric appliances to more efficient models?
It’s worth pausing on why “going electric” and going efficient, actually matters, beyond just accessing government funding.
Lower running costs. Reverse-cycle air conditioners and heat pump hot water systems use a fraction of the energy of older electric resistance heaters or gas systems, because they move heat rather than generate it. That translates directly into lower bills, year after year.
Better performance and comfort. Modern reverse-cycle systems heat and cool more evenly and respond faster than ageing units. Induction cooktops offer more precise, controllable heat than old electric coil cooktops (and are safer, with no open flame or residual heat).
Compounding savings with solar and batteries. An efficient appliance uses less power to begin with. Pair that with rooftop solar and a home battery, and you’re not just using less energy, you’re using cheaper, self-generated energy for what you do use. This is where the real bill savings show up over time.
Lower emissions. Efficient electric appliances powered by rooftop solar produce a fraction of the emissions of gas or inefficient electric equivalents, which matters if reducing your household’s environmental footprint is part of your motivation.
Ready to get started?
The NSW Home Energy Saver Program is one of the most significant home energy incentives NSW has ever offered, and the window to make the most of it is now. Whether you’re after heating and cooling, a hot water upgrade, or a full switchboard and electrification overhaul, Emerald can help you work out what you qualify for and get it installed properly.
Get in touch with Emerald today to find out which HESP upgrades are right for your home.