A new solar owner often hears one troubling line: the network can remotely switch off their system. This is Emergency Solar Management, usually shortened to ESM. It is a real requirement for solar in Western Australia. It is also widely misunderstood. It sounds like the grid can control a household’s power at will. The reality is far narrower. It is far rarer, too. It is also far less dramatic.
This guide explains what Emergency Solar Management is. It explains why Western Australia needed it. It covers what happens if it is ever used. It covers how often that has actually happened. It explains what it means for a household installing solar now.
What Emergency Solar Management Is
Emergency Solar Management is a grid stability measure. It allows the network to curtail rooftop solar generation or export remotely. This only happens during rare emergency conditions. In plain terms, it is a safety valve. Too much rooftop solar can sometimes threaten the security of the grid. When this happens, ESM allows that solar to be turned down or off briefly. It stays off only until the system is stable again.
The critical detail is often missed. It is what ESM actually affects. It curtails solar generation or export only. Power to the home keeps flowing as normal. A household under an ESM event keeps its lights on. The fridge and air conditioning keep running as normal too. The home draws from the grid, just as any home without solar would. The only change is that the panels stop sending energy out. This lasts only for a short period.
Why Western Australia Needed It
Western Australia sits in an unusual position. The South West Interconnected System is the grid that serves Perth and the south west. It is an island grid. It cannot import or export power to another state when conditions get difficult. This means it must balance itself entirely on its own.
At the same time, WA has one of the highest amounts of rooftop solar in the world. On a mild, sunny weekend, demand can be very low. Rooftop generation can be very high at the same time. The grid can then approach what engineers call minimum demand. This is the point where so little conventional generation is needed that the system becomes hard to control safely. Emergency Solar Management exists for exactly those moments. It is a tool of last resort. It lets the system operator protect grid security without using blunter measures.
How Often Has It Actually Been Used?
This is the reassuring part. It deserves to be stated plainly. Emergency Solar Management has been in place in Western Australia for several years. It has never been activated for a real emergency event. The only activity to date has been routine network testing. This testing simply confirms the capability works.
The requirement is real, and systems must be capable of it. In practice, WA households simply have it sitting in the background, unused. It is best understood as insurance for the grid. Day-to-day solar performance stays unchanged.
Common Misunderstandings
| What people assume | What is actually true |
|---|---|
| The grid can switch off my house | ESM curtails solar generation or export only; the home stays powered from the grid |
| It happens regularly | It has never been activated for a real event in WA; only routine testing |
| It applies to my existing system | The 2026 requirements apply to new and upgraded systems from 1 May 2026 |
| I lose all my feed-in credits | Export would pause only during a rare event, not on an ongoing basis |
| Someone is monitoring my home | It is a network-level capability, not household surveillance |
What It Means If You Are Installing Solar Now
From 1 May 2026, new and upgraded rooftop solar and battery systems must meet updated connection rules. This applies to systems connected to the South West Interconnected System. Every new inverter must meet one of two conditions. It must be capable of responding to Emergency Solar Management. It must also communicate through the CSIP-AUS standard. If not, it must be permanently export limited to 1.5 kilowatts.
For most Perth households, the choice is simple. A modern, communications-capable inverter supports ESM. It also keeps the full export allowance. This is far better than accepting a permanent 1.5 kilowatt cap. In other words, ESM capability is not something to avoid. It is the pathway that gives a system its full capability. Systems installed before 1 May 2026 continue under the rules that applied at the time.
How a Battery Changes the Picture
A household with a battery is largely protected from all of this. If solar export is ever curtailed, a battery simply stores the surplus instead. The energy is kept rather than lost. The same is true of the permanent export cap. This cap applies to systems without communications capability.
This is the broader theme running through solar in Western Australia now. The value has shifted towards using and storing energy at home. Curtailment, export limits and low feed-in rates all point the same way. A battery is the most complete answer to all three.
Where Positive Energy Solutions Fits
These requirements are technical and they change over time. They are best handled by a team that works with them daily. Positive Energy Solutions installs communications-capable inverters from Fronius, Sungrow and SigEnergy as standard. This means systems meet the current WA connection rules. There is no need to accept an unnecessary export cap.
There is also unusually direct experience behind that. Jason Wiktorowicz led Emergency Solar Management during its development and rollout. He now heads sales at Positive Energy Solutions. He also worked on CSIP-AUS, the communications standard that supports these rules. Every installation is completed by our accredited installers and signed off to Positive Energy’s completion standards. It comes backed by a 10-year installation workmanship warranty. It also comes with Positive Energy Protection, powered by Omnidian, monitoring from day one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Emergency Solar Management turn off my power?
No. It curtails solar generation or export only. During an event, the home continues to draw electricity from the grid as normal. Lights, appliances and air conditioning stay unaffected.
Has Emergency Solar Management ever actually been used in WA?
It has been in place for several years. It has never been activated for a real emergency event. The only activity has been routine network testing. This testing confirms the capability functions.
Does Emergency Solar Management apply to my existing solar?
The requirements introduced on 1 May 2026 apply to new and upgraded systems from that date. An existing system continues under the rules that applied when it was installed.
Do I have to accept ESM, or can I opt out?
A new system must meet one of two conditions. It must support Emergency Solar Management through CSIP-AUS communications. Otherwise, it must be permanently export limited to 1.5 kilowatts. For most households, the communications pathway is far better. It preserves the full export capacity.
Will I lose money because of it?
In practice, very little. Events have not occurred, and any curtailment would be brief. A battery removes the concern almost entirely. It stores surplus energy rather than exporting it.
A Safety Valve, Not a Switch
Emergency Solar Management is far less intrusive than its name suggests. It is a rarely used grid protection. It has never been triggered in earnest. It affects exports rather than the home itself. Understanding it turns an alarming line in a quote into a simple technical requirement. Choosing the right inverter keeps a system at its full capability.
Talk to the local team about a system that meets WA’s requirements without compromise: positiveenergy.com.au/contact/
About the Author
Jason Wiktorowicz
Sales Manager, Positive Energy Solutions | Perth, WA
Jason has been at the centre of Western Australia’s energy transition for over a decade. He was Orchestration Lead on Project Symphony, WA’s largest virtual power plant pilot. He was also Stream Lead on Project Encore. In these roles, he worked directly with AEMO, Western Power and Energy Policy WA. Together they shaped how distributed energy resources connect and operate on the SWIS. That work included developing and rolling out CSIP-AUS. This standard is now mandatory for all new WA grid connections. He also led Emergency Solar Management, the first program of its kind in WA. He led VPP for Schools, too. This program provided direct market benefits through Supplementary Reserve Capacity. He also led REBAR, the WA Residential Battery Rebate scheme.
His earlier career spanned Synergy, Infinite Energy and Curtin University’s Sustainability Policy Institute. There, he co-authored peer-reviewed research on net-zero urban precincts, solar integration and peer-to-peer energy trading. This research was published in the journal Urban Planning in 2018.
At Positive Energy Solutions, Jason leads sales with a focus on system design accuracy and long-term performance. Positive Energy Solutions installs solar and battery systems, EV chargers and heat pumps. The company is an accredited partner of Fronius, SigEnergy, iStore and SunPower.
10-year installation workmanship warranty. Positive Energy Protection, powered by Omnidian, performance monitoring included on all systems.
