July 2025, the peak of the Australian winter season, saw generation from utility-scale and rooftop solar increase by 12.78% year-on-year in the National Electricity Market (NEM).
As detailed in the data below, which was sourced from Open Electricity, formerly known as OpenNEM, which aims to make NEM and Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM) data more accessible to a broader audience, solar generated 2,725GWh in July 2025 compared to 2,425GWh generated a year prior.
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Specifically, utility-scale solar generated 1,136GWh in July 2025, compared to 971GWh in 2024, whereas rooftop solar PV soared to 1,599GWh – an increase of 145GWh on last year.
The rise in generation capacity has undoubtedly been supported by the rollout of increased solar PV in Australia. It comes as the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) reported a record-breaking surge in new renewable energy generation and storage assets reaching full operation within the NEM.
In the third quarter, spanning April to June, 10 projects reached full output. This includes 613MW of solar PV, two grid-forming battery energy storage systems (BESS) totalling 385MW, and a 100MW grid-following BESS.
These include the Wollar (280MW), Stubbo 2 (198MW), Wunghnu (75MW), Mannum 2 (30MW), and Kerang (30MW) solar PV power plants, as well as the Greenbank (200MW/400MWh), Koorangie (185MW/370MWh), and Latrobe Valley (100MW/200MWh) BESS sites.
It should also be noted that, as expected, month-on-month solar generation in the NEM increased from 2,474.4GWh, representing a rise of 10.53%. You can learn more about the solar generation across the NEM in June 2025 in our previous NEM data spotlight.
Utility-scale solar PV averages at 36.71GWh per day
Utility-scale and rooftop solar PV generation across the NEM remained relatively steady across July 2025, averaging 36.71GWh per day for utility-scale solar, and rooftop solar averaging at 51.74GWh per day.
As expected, both figures increased from June 2025. Utility-scale solar recorded a 2.51GWh increase on the 34.2GWh in June, while rooftop solar increased by 3.54GWh.
The peak for solar PV generation across the NEM occurred on 24 July, with rooftop solar contributing 67GWh and utility-scale solar providing 46GWh. You can find a full breakdown exclusive to PV Tech Premium subscribers below.
As seen above, utility-scale solar PV, although smaller throughout the month than rooftop solar, peaked on 20 July, generating 48GWh. This was closely followed by 47GWh on 7 July, and 46GWh on 24 July.
Interestingly, this 48GWh figure was enough to out-generate rooftop solar PV across 10 days in July.
In contrast, utility-scale solar reached its lowest point on 26 July, generating 18.2GWh. This coincided with rooftop solar PV’s lowest generation day, which came in at 29.8GWh.
Rooftop solar PV generation across the NEM peaked on 24 July, reaching 67GWh. This is 10GWh higher than the highest point in June and would be enough to rank as the joint-second best day in May 2025.
Utility-scale solar prices peak on 1 July
In July 2025, utility-scale solar prices averaged AU$41.55/MWh, showing a month-on-month decrease of approximately AU$10/MWh. Rooftop solar prices averaged AU$33.10/MWh, which was lower than the AU$41.85/MWh recorded the previous month.
As seen in the graph above, utility-scale solar prices spiked on the first day of the month, reaching AU$126.17/MWh before sharply dropping to AU$66.26/MWh on 2 July.
Meanwhile, rooftop solar prices peaked on 15 July when they reached AU$106.32/MWh. Price also dipped into the negatives on the 13 and 24 July, reaching -AU$0.34/MWh and -AU$7.18/MWh.
You can find all previous entries of the NEM data spotlight, exclusive to PV Tech Premium subscribers, available here.
