By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent
As North Carolina climbed the list of best solar states in the country, the growth was often attributed to utility-scale solar installations. But Duke Energy wants to remind you that it’s also provides nearly $6 million in solar rebates to 1,300 residential and commercial distributed generation customers, too.
And the new window for getting solar rebates for next year opens on January 2.
The Duke Energy solar rebate program is one of many customer programs the company is implementing as part of the Competitive Energy Solutions for North Carolina law passed in 2017. The rebates have helped many residential and business customers take the solar leap.
“We are proud to make Birdsong the first Charlotte brewery to go solar,” said Chris Goulet, president of Birdsong Brewery. “Partnering with Duke Energy and its solar rebate program made the project’s economics even more attractive. The company’s solar installation is a big step toward making our organization more sustainable.”
North Carolina is No. 2 in the nation for solar power, including more than 8,000 Duke Energy customers in the state owning private solar systems. The company’s rebate program launched this summer attracted so much interest that capacity for residential and non-residential customers was fully subscribed within weeks. There is still capacity for nonprofit customers in 2018.
More than $6 million has been distributed to customers in 2018, with additional rebates set to be paid later in the year as systems are connected. The program will run through 2022, with an estimated 7,500 customers expected to receive Duke Energy rebates for solar systems.
The company will soon begin accepting new applications from customers who want to participate:
- On Jan. 2, the company will open the window for an additional 20 megawatts of new rooftop solar installations for residential, non-residential and nonprofit customers.
- Per the N.C. Utilities Commission order earlier in the year, the company will also reallocate any 2018 capacity for projects that have not been installed. That means customers who were waitlisted in 2018 with already-installed projects will be allowed to collect any available rebates. Any unconnected customers, or those that connected projects Oct. 3, 2018, or later, are eligible to apply in 2019.
Under the program, residential customers are eligible for a rebate of 60 cents per watt for solar energy systems 10 kilowatts (kW) or less. For example, a typical rooftop array of 8 kW is eligible for a $4,800 rebate. Installed systems 10 kW or greater are eligible for a maximum rebate of $6,000.
Nonresidential customers are eligible for 50 cents per watt. Nonprofit customers (such as churches and schools) are eligible for an enhanced rebate of 75 cents per watt for systems 100 kW or less.