Agreement16 September 20265 min read

Our VPP program, explained

A home battery mounted on the concrete wall of a house at dusk, beside a timber screen.

What you agree to when your battery joins our virtual power plant with HighFlow Energy: the eleven key commercial terms set out in a table, what we are obliged to do in return, and how either side ends it.

What the agreement does

A virtual power plant is a fleet of home batteries operated together. When the grid is short of supply, congested or under strain, the fleet discharges to it; when there is spare capacity, it charges. HighFlow Energy runs that fleet. This agreement is what lets your battery join it, and it gives New Ability Energy the right to enrol and operate the battery under the program, including through contractors.

The agreement runs for ten years from the Commencement Date, which is the later of the day both parties sign and the day the battery is installed and operational at your premises. It sits alongside your New Ability Supply Agreement, the contract under which the battery was supplied, and it is separate from your electricity retail contract. Your account and bill stay in your name.

HighFlow Energy is our Partnered Retailer for the program. We handle the retailer on the data side, and you make the switch. Signing the VPP agreement with us is step one. Step two is completing your own sign up with HighFlow Energy on its page for New Ability Energy customers, which you are taken to as soon as you have signed. If you are not willing to switch, this is not a fit.

Revenue from VPP events and the earnings from your solar and battery system are used to pay all of your daily charges and the remaining supply and usage charges.

The key commercial terms, one by one

Part 1 of the agreement lists eleven key commercial terms. They are the clauses a homeowner most needs to have understood before signing, and where Part 1 and Part 2 disagree, Part 1 prevails. The table gives each term in plain words with the clause in Part 2 that carries the detail.

Part 1 key commercial terms and where Part 2 carries them
Term	What it means	Clause
Term and expiry	Ten years from the Commencement Date, unless the agreement ends earlier under its own terms.	3
Remote control of the battery	New Ability Energy can access, control and operate the battery at any time, including during VPP events, and can send power to the grid from electricity you bought or your solar generated.	9.1, 10
VPP revenue	All money earned from operating the battery under the program, including from VPP events, is kept by New Ability Energy.	9.1(5), 10(2)
Eligibility criteria can change	Only where a change in law, regulation or a material technical or operational requirement makes it necessary, on at least 30 days' written notice with the reason. If the change is materially adverse to you, you can end the agreement without penalty within 30 days of the notice.	4.2
Government incentives	Any government incentive relating to the battery and the program belongs to New Ability Energy, and you agree to assign it and help transfer it. An incentive paid to you directly is passed on.	7
Authority with electricity retailers	New Ability Energy is appointed to manage your electricity account: it can choose, negotiate with or switch your retailer or plan without asking each time, must act reasonably and in good faith with regard to your interests, and must tell you of any change within a reasonable period. The authority ends with the agreement.	6
Minimum capacity reserved for you	At least 20% of the battery's rated storage capacity is always held for your own use. Savings on your electricity bill are not guaranteed.	5(3), 9.1(5)
Electricity costs	Your costs may change. Grid electricity drawn to charge the battery during a VPP event is at your cost. Unless agreed in writing, New Ability Energy does not charge the battery from the grid simply to sell power back to it.	9.1(6)
Selling or renting the property	If you sell, you notify New Ability Energy at least 14 days before settlement and use reasonable endeavours to have the buyer take the agreement over. If you rent the property out, the tenant must be told and agree in writing to the access and battery terms before the tenancy starts.	8.2
Termination rights	New Ability Energy can end the agreement immediately for a material breach not fixed within 14 days of notice, if you no longer meet the eligibility criteria, or on 30 days' written notice. You can end it immediately for our unremedied material breach, under your consumer law rights, or on at least 30 days' written notice.	13
Limits on liability	Subject to the Australian Consumer Law, neither party is liable to the other for indirect or consequential loss, including lost profit, revenue or anticipated savings. The full position is in Part 2.	11, 12

What New Ability Energy must do

The obligations run both ways. New Ability Energy enrols the battery into the VPP platform, a process that can take up to four weeks, and operates the program in accordance with good industry practice and the New Energy Tech Consumer Code. Outside VPP events, the battery is operated to supply your premises with the aim of reducing what you buy from your retailer, without a guaranteed minimum saving.

Personal information is handled under our privacy policy and the Privacy Act. The battery's operating data is collected and shared through the VPP platform, which is what makes the fleet work, and your consent to that use is one of the eligibility criteria.

Complaints go to the phone number, email or postal address in item 3 of the agreement's Details, are handled under a procedure that complies with the New Energy Tech Consumer Code and AS/NZS 10002:2022, and can be taken to Fair Trading or the equivalent office in your state or territory if you are not satisfied.

What you need before you join

Your battery needs a stable internet connection for the whole term, because the plant reaches it over the internet (clauses 4.1 and 8.1).

If you or anyone at the premises is on life support, please let us know. Households with registered life support equipment cannot take part, because the plant operates the battery remotely.

Check your battery manufacturer's warranty to see whether joining a virtual power plant affects any of its conditions.

Ending the agreement

There is a cooling off period of ten business days from the date of the agreement, during which you can end it for any reason and without penalty. No services are provided during that period.

After that, the termination rights in the table apply. Two further exits exist: if a change to the eligibility criteria is materially adverse to you, and if a change of legislation makes you ineligible, in which case either party can end the agreement on 30 days' written notice. If the agreement is an unsolicited consumer agreement under the Australian Consumer Law, the longer statutory termination windows in clause 12.4 apply as well.

Signing, and what follows

The agreement is signed electronically on our signing page, which clause 17.15 provides for. You read the document in full, give four details (your name, email, supply address and meter number, or NMI), confirm two things, that you accept the agreement and that you understand either party can end it, and type your name. The page fingerprints the exact wording you saw, records the signature in our register and emails you a complete copy.

Once signed, you are taken to HighFlow Energy's sign up page for New Ability Energy customers to make the switch to our Partnered Retailer. Keep the emailed copy: it is your record of the agreement, and it does not depend on this website.

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