Duke Energy said solar energy customers can apply for Duke Energy’s solar rebate program from January 2.
The company will accept applications for an additional 20 megawatts of new rooftop solar installations for residential, non-residential and nonprofit customers on January 2.
More than 1,300 solar energy customers have installed systems and qualified for rebates in 2018. The company is implementing the Duke Energy solar rebate program as part of the Competitive Energy Solutions for North Carolina law passed in 2017.
Birdsong, a brewery in Charlotte, has gone solar thanks to solar rebate program offered by Duke Energy.
“Partnering with Duke Energy and its solar rebate program made the project’s economics even more attractive,” said Chris Goulet, president of Birdsong Brewery.
Duke Energy has more than 8,000 customers in North Carolina, the No. 2 in the nation for solar power. The company’s rebate program launched this summer was fully subscribed within weeks due to demand from residential and non-residential customers. There is still capacity for nonprofit customers in 2018.
Duke Energy has distributed more than $6 million to customers in 2018. There will be more rebates 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 also reallocate any 2018 capacity for projects that have not been installed per the N.C. Utilities Commission order earlier in the year. 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.
Residential customers are eligible for a rebate of 60 cents per watt for solar energy systems 10 kilowatts (kW) or less under the program. A typical rooftop array of 8 kW is eligible for a $4,800 rebate. Installed systems 10 kW or greater is 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.