Solar for Shoalhaven Accommodation Businesses: 2026 Guide | Kratos

Solar for Shoalhaven Accommodation Owners: How Should You Size the System?

For accommodation businesses in Shoalhaven NSW, solar should not be sized from roof space alone.

Hotels, motels, holiday villas, short-stay properties and resorts can have electricity profiles that change dramatically between:

• Summer and winter

• Weekdays and weekends

• School holidays and quieter periods

• Full occupancy and vacant periods

A property may have heavy electricity consumption during Christmas and summer holidays, then operate at significantly lower occupancy for parts of the year.

That creates an important solar-design question:

Should the system be sized around peak occupancy—or around the property's year-round electricity profile?

In most cases, the stronger approach is to analyse:

annual electricity consumption + seasonal occupancy + permanent common-area loads + daytime demand + future energy requirements.

The Australian Government similarly recommends that businesses choose solar according to how much electricity they use, when they use it, available sunny roof space and budget, rather than simply maximising panel capacity.

Explore Kratos commercial solar systems

Why Solar Is Relevant to Shoalhaven Accommodation

Tourism is a significant part of the Shoalhaven economy, and accommodation demand is highly seasonal.

Shoalhaven City Council's 2026 travel guidance reports that accommodation occupancy across the region can peak at approximately 80% between Christmas and New Year. The figure is based on regional Localis accommodation data and should not be interpreted as the occupancy rate of every individual property.

That seasonal pattern matters for solar.

An accommodation property operating near capacity in January may have heavy loads from:

• Air conditioning

• Hot water

• Guest rooms

• Laundry

• Pool filtration

• Commercial kitchens

• Refrigeration

The same property may use considerably less electricity during a quieter month.

A solar proposal should therefore reflect the full year, not only the property's busiest electricity bill.

Accommodation Solar: Quick Assessment Checklist

For commercial businesses, Australian Government guidance recommends using interval meter data where available because it gives a more accurate picture of solar-system sizing and savings.

1. Start With Seasonal Occupancy

An accommodation business should ideally compare electricity consumption with booking or occupancy data.

For example:

Peak Summer

Occupancy: 90%

Major loads:

• Air conditioning

• Hot water

• Laundry

• Pool

• Kitchen

• Guest appliances

Shoulder Season

Occupancy: 55%

Some guest loads decrease while common-area electricity continues.

Quiet Period

Occupancy: 25%

Guest consumption falls substantially, but refrigeration, security, Wi-Fi and other permanent loads remain.

This information allows the solar designer to determine whether the system will still be productive outside the peak holiday season.

Why Peak Occupancy Alone Can Oversize Solar

Consider a hypothetical Shoalhaven accommodation property.

Peak-season electricity use

75kWh/day

Off-season electricity use

30kWh/day

Designing solar purely around the 75kWh peak could create substantial exports for much of the year.

That is not automatically a poor design—especially where future demand is expected—but the financial model should show:

summer self-consumption + winter self-consumption + annual exports

rather than assuming the property operates at peak occupancy all year.

The goal is to find a system that performs effectively across the whole operating cycle.

2. Separate Guest Loads From Common-Area Loads

One of the most useful steps is separating electricity consumption into:

Occupancy-Dependent Loads

These increase as guest numbers rise.

Examples include:

• Guest-room air conditioning

• Hot water

• Cooking

• Room lighting

• Hair dryers

• Guest appliances

Permanent or Common-Area Loads

These may continue regardless of occupancy.

Examples include:

• Reception

• Security systems

• Wi-Fi

• Refrigeration

• Outdoor lighting

• Pool pumps

• Water pumps

• Common ventilation

This distinction matters because common-area loads can create reliable year-round solar self-consumption.

Pool Equipment Can Work Particularly Well With Solar

Accommodation properties with pools can have significant filtration demand.

The advantage is that pool equipment can often operate during the day.

Consider a hypothetical pool pump using:

2kW for 6 hours

Daily consumption:

12kWh

If most of that operation occurs between late morning and afternoon, rooftop solar may supply a meaningful portion directly.

This can be preferable to:

exporting solar during the day → running pool equipment overnight from the grid.

Where operationally practical, controllable equipment should be scheduled around solar-generation hours.

3. Hot Water Can Be a Major Accommodation Load

Guest accommodation can use substantial energy for hot water.

Usage may come from:

• Showers

• Bathrooms

• Kitchens

• Laundry

• Cleaning

• Spa facilities

The ideal solar strategy depends on the hot-water system.

Where compatible equipment allows it, some water heating can potentially occur during strong solar-production periods.

For accommodation properties, this may turn hot water into a useful daytime energy load rather than concentrating all heating overnight.

Before changing operating schedules, however, the owner should consider:

• Equipment type

• Hot-water storage

• Guest demand

• Controlled-load tariffs

• Hygiene-temperature requirements

• Manufacturer instructions

4. Laundry Is Another Solar-Friendly Load

Accommodation operators frequently run:

• Washing machines

• Commercial dryers

• Linen equipment

between guest departures and new check-ins.

This often occurs during daylight hours.

For example:

10 AM–3 PM

can overlap well with rooftop solar production.

A motel or villa complex with significant laundry demand may therefore achieve stronger solar self-consumption than a property outsourcing all linen services.

The solar designer should understand how the business actually operates, not simply the number of guest rooms.

5. Air Conditioning Can Drive Peak Summer Demand

Summer accommodation occupancy and air-conditioning usage often rise at the same time.

This can create a useful solar match because the strongest cooling demand frequently occurs during daylight hours when panels are producing.

Suppose:

Solar production at 2 PM:

20kW

Property electricity demand:

18kW

Much of the solar can potentially be consumed onsite.

But later:

Solar production at 9 PM:

0kW

Property demand:

15kW

That electricity must come from the grid or battery storage.

This demonstrates why interval data is much more valuable than looking only at total monthly kWh.

6. Do Not Ignore Off-Season Base Load

Even when no guests are staying, an accommodation property rarely drops to zero consumption.

Possible base loads include:

• Refrigerators

• Freezers

• Routers

• Booking/security equipment

• Pool filtration

• Water pumps

• Hot-water standby

• Emergency lighting

• CCTV

Suppose an empty property consistently uses:

10kWh/day

That base consumption provides useful year-round demand for solar.

Measuring it prevents the solar designer from incorrectly assuming the property consumes almost nothing when rooms are vacant.

Worked Example: Small Shoalhaven Accommodation Property

Consider a hypothetical property containing:

8 holiday villas

plus:

• Swimming pool

• Shared laundry

• Reception

• Outdoor lighting

This is an illustrative model only.

Peak Summer

Property consumption:

60kWh/day

Shoulder Season

Property consumption:

40kWh/day

Low Occupancy

Property consumption:

25kWh/day

Rather than choosing a system using the 60kWh peak alone, the installer should examine:

• Annual kWh consumption

• Daytime load profile

• Solar-generation estimate

• Expected self-consumption

• Expected exports

The strongest system may be one that offsets a large share of the consistent daytime base load, while providing additional generation when occupancy rises.

7. Should Accommodation Businesses Aim for High Self-Consumption?

Generally, yes.

The Australian Government's business solar guidance notes that for businesses with high electricity use, its SunSPOT modelling may suggest the largest system that still allows approximately 80% of generation to be self-consumed, where practical.

This is not a rule requiring every accommodation business to achieve 80%.

Instead, it highlights an important principle:

Solar used onsite can be more valuable than solar exported.

For a Shoalhaven accommodation operator, this means the proposal should clearly estimate:

• Annual generation

• Solar used onsite

• Solar exported

• Grid electricity remaining

Do not judge the proposal only from system kW.

8. Should You Install a Battery?

Possibly—but battery storage should follow the load analysis.

A battery deserves investigation where the property:

• Exports substantial solar during the day

• Has heavy evening guest demand

• Operates year-round

• Requires backup for important loads

• Wants greater solar self-consumption

For example:

Daytime surplus

25kWh

Evening guest demand

20kWh

That profile may create a useful storage opportunity.

But consider another property:

Daytime surplus

25kWh

Off-season evening demand

5kWh

A large battery may regularly be under-used during quieter periods.

Battery capacity should therefore be designed around seasonal as well as peak usage.

Blackout Backup Needs a Separate Assessment

Accommodation businesses may want backup for:

• Reception

• Wi-Fi

• Security

• Refrigeration

• Emergency lighting

• Critical water pumps

Backing up these essential circuits is very different from attempting to run:

• Every room air conditioner

• Commercial kitchen

• Pool equipment

• Electric hot water

through a blackout.

Battery quotes should clearly state:

usable kWh + continuous backup kW + circuits included.

Do not assume a large battery automatically means whole-property backup.

9. Roof Ownership Must Be Confirmed Early

Some accommodation businesses operate from buildings they do not own.

Others may operate within:

• Strata properties

• Managed complexes

• Leased commercial premises

• Multiple separately titled villas

Before committing to solar, establish:

• Who owns the roof?

• Who pays the electricity bill?

• Who pays for solar?

• Who receives the savings?

• Who owns the equipment?

• Who handles maintenance?

• What happens if the operator leaves?

Australian Government business-solar guidance specifically notes that rented and multi-occupancy premises require additional consideration before installing solar.

The technical design should not proceed without a workable ownership arrangement.

10. One Roof or Multiple Buildings?

Shoalhaven accommodation can take many forms.

A traditional motel may have:

One large continuous roof.

A holiday-villa complex may have:

Eight or ten small separate roofs.

A caravan park may have:

Reception + amenities + cabins + shared facilities.

That changes solar design significantly.

The assessment needs to determine:

• Where electricity meters are located

• Which buildings share electrical infrastructure

• Which roofs are productive

• How cabling can be routed

• Where inverters can be installed

• Whether several smaller arrays or one central system is preferable

Total roof area alone does not answer these questions.

11. Remote Monitoring Is Especially Useful for Accommodation Owners

Solar monitoring can be valuable for any business, but it can be particularly useful where owners or managers are not physically onsite every day.

A monitoring platform can help track:

• Daily solar production

• Historical generation

• Inverter status

• Alerts

• Consumption, where compatible metering is installed

• Grid exports/imports

Kratos states that its systems include Wi-Fi monitoring and that many system issues can be investigated remotely through its support service.

View Kratos monitoring and support information

A fault discovered through monitoring after one day is much less costly than one discovered through an unusually high electricity bill months later.

12. EV Charging Can Become a Guest Amenity

Accommodation operators should also consider whether guest EV charging may become part of the property.

EV chargers can increase electricity demand, but daytime charging may also create productive solar self-consumption.

For example:

Guest vehicle charging:

7kW

Available surplus solar:

6kW

A smart charging system may be able to use much of that available rooftop generation.

For a property planning future EV infrastructure, the solar designer should consider the load before finalising system capacity and switchboard requirements.

13. Shoalhaven Is Within Endeavour Energy's Network

Endeavour Energy identifies Shoalhaven among the local government areas within its electricity distribution network.

That means a grid-connected accommodation solar system still requires appropriate network connection assessment.

The installer should confirm:

• Existing electrical supply

• Single- or three-phase configuration

• Inverter capacity

• Network application

• Export arrangement

• Metering changes

Roof capacity is only one part of the project.

14. Should You Install 10kW, 30kW or More?

There is no universal “accommodation solar system size.”

A small short-stay property may operate electrically much like a large home.

A motel or resort may require commercial-scale solar.

Kratos currently offers commercial systems from approximately 30kW through 100kW+, with system design based on load profile, tariff and available roof or ground space.

A useful starting framework is:

System category should follow actual electricity demand and site configuration, not the word used to describe the accommodation business.

What Data Should Accommodation Owners Provide?

For a strong solar proposal, prepare:

Electricity Data

• 12 months of electricity bills

• Smart-meter interval data

• Demand charges where applicable

Occupancy Data

• Monthly occupancy percentage

• Seasonal peaks

• Weekend vs weekday patterns

Property Loads

• Air conditioning

• Hot water

• Pool/spa

• Laundry

• Kitchens

• Refrigeration

• EV charging

Property Information

• Roof ownership

• Building layout

• Roof condition

• Meter locations

• Existing solar

Future Plans

• Additional rooms

• EV chargers

• Battery storage

• Pool/spa expansion

• Electrification

Combining electricity data with occupancy data makes the system-sizing process far more useful.

Frequently Asked Questions

 Solar for Shoalhaven Accommodation Owners: The Bottom Line

For a Shoalhaven accommodation business, the strongest solar design should follow:

Electricity data → occupancy pattern → common-area loads → daytime consumption → roof ownership → network connection → future demand.

Do not size solar only from the busiest Christmas week.

Do not size it only from total roof area.

And do not automatically add a battery simply because the property operates at night.

Instead, identify the electricity loads that remain consistent throughout the year and determine how much solar the business can productively use during daylight hours.

For accommodation owners, particularly those operating seasonally, that produces a much more realistic solar investment.

Explore Kratos commercial solar solutions

View Kratos solar projects

Contact Kratos Energy for a site-specific assessment

For accommodation solar, the right system is not the one designed for your busiest week—it is the one that performs efficiently across the entire operating year.