A little faster, yes, and the reason is the power you use yourself, not what you export. As of 28 September 2026: several suppliers are raising their unit prices in October 2026, on top of a typical unit rate of about 35c per kWh including VAT. Export payments haven't moved with them. Under the Clean Export Guarantee the main suppliers pay between 18.5c and 20c per kWh (rates as of 25 August 2026).
So every unit your panels make and you use at home now saves more, because it replaces a unit you'd have bought at the higher price. Every unit you export still earns about the same. At 35c, a unit used at home was already worth 15c to 16.5c more than a unit exported, and after the rises the gap is wider.
Panels: payback improves in line with how much of your own generation you use. A home that's occupied during the day, or runs the immersion, dishwasher, washing machine or EV charging in daylight, gains most.
Battery: a battery's job is to turn exported units into self-used ones, and to move cheap night units into the evening. Both are worth more when day rates rise and export rates don't. It still only pays if it's sized to your evening use.
Before you buy a battery this month: a €600 battery grant is expected in Budget 2027 on 6 October 2026. It isn't confirmed, and the rules and start date aren't published. A battery supplied and installed with the panels under the same contract gets 0% VAT; one added later doesn't.
Export income: up to €400 a year is tax-free for each person named on the account, until the end of 2028.
To see what it means for your home, take the new unit rate from your supplier's price-change letter and compare it with your export rate.