When people think of solar power, they usually imagine an off-grid system that leaves them free from the clutches of their utility power company. They fantasize about a battery connected system that powers them day and night. Well, that dream could be realized, but it isn’t something you’d really want.
Typically, solar installations, especially in urban regions like Durham, CT are coupled with the power grid. The grid acts like a giant battery, supplying power to you when your solar panels cannot.
Why Do You Even Need Battery Storage?
Even with grid-tied solar systems, there’s a strong case to be made for adding battery storage to your system. For one, battery storage gives you protection against power outages that could occur due to weather phenomena or technical problems. Secondly, if you are in the Eversource or UI territory, you may qualify for some lucrative incentives.
As part of the Connecticut Greenbank Energy Storage Solutions Program, customers qualify for an upfront $200 incentive for every kWh of battery storage capacity they install. So, if you install a 10 kWh system, you get a flat $2,000 upfront incentive in the very first year. The incentive is capped at $7,500 annually.
What’s more, your system could also qualify for performance incentives based on how much energy your solar system supplied to the grid during critical times. And, since you can store excess solar power in your battery and supply it to the grid when it needs it, you can make quite a lot of money this way too.
The Best Part? No Taxes!
Solar installations and qualified accompanying equipment are exempted from sales taxes and property taxes. Your installations directly increase the value of your property, but you don’t pay a higher tax for it. That’s right; we are not kidding.
So, you can add battery storage for a radically lower cost, since you don’t have to pay a sales tax on it.
How About a 26% Effective Discount
Residential solar installations qualify for a flat 26% federal income tax credit on the value of their solar installation. And, battery storage qualifies for the same incentive. In other words, you can get battery storage for a price that’s 26% lower than its market price.
And, don’t forget, this incentive is in addition to the sales tax waiver. So, the total effective discount could be much lower.
There’s a caveat, though. As you are availing a tax credit and not an upfront discount, your annual taxes should be at least as much as 26% of your system’s value, to be able to take full advantage of the incentive.
Terrific incentives, unprecedented prices, high storage capacities, resilience against outages – what’s there not to love? Wait long, and some of these opportunities may be gone forever!
