Frequently asked questions about residential and commercial solar electric programs
Effective at 5 p.m. on Friday, April 9, 2010, SRP reduced incentive levels for its residential and commercial solar electric programs. Choose any link to get answers to your questions about the changes.
Why did SRP reduce the incentive levels for these programs?
We've had an overwhelmingly successful year with residential and commercial customers benefiting from more than $22 million in solar electric and solar water heating incentive payments from SRP. As a result, we need to decrease the incentive funding in order to continue the programs and allow more customer participation without exhausting funds.
Are SRP's solar water heating incentive programs affected?
The residential and commercial solar water heating incentive levels will remain unchanged. One new aspect for the Residential Solar Water Heating Program is that the program will now have a $2 million cap for installations from May 1, 2010 through April 30, 2011.
I have submitted a solar application already. What incentive level will I receive?
If your application was submitted to SRP before April 8, 2010, you are still eligible to receive an incentive under the old incentive levels, pending review and approval of the paperwork.
What if I have already committed to installing a solar electric system but have not yet submitted an application?
SRP recognizes that some customers may have signed a contract to install a solar electric system on their home or business, but have not finalized the required paperwork to reserve an incentive with SRP. To accommodate these customers, SRP provided reservations at the old incentive level for customers that provided a copy of the contract that they signed with their selected contractor by 5 p.m. on Friday, April 9. In order to retain the incentive reservation, complete application packages for those contracts must be submitted by 5 p.m. on Friday, April 30, 2010.
Please note that SRP has returned to its standard processing requirements as it pertains to reserving an incentive. The application documents state what information is necessary to reserve an incentive.
What had to be included in the signed contract in order to reserve an incentive payment at the old incentive rate?
Contracts had to be drafted on contractor's letterhead and contain the following information, at a minimum:
- Customer's name
- Installation address
- Total system cost
- Module manufacturer, model number, and quantity
- Inverter manufacturer, model number, and quantity
- For leased systems, a copy of the terms of the lease agreement.
How does this relate to the recent SRP price increase?
The recent price increase was due to the need for capital recovery and operational expenses for the new $1 billion generating unit at Springerville Generating Station and to pay for a portion of the $539 million in new technology to further reduce emissions at Coronado Generating Station near St. Johns, Arizona.
How are the solar electric programs funded?
The funding for our solar programs comes from SRP's Environmental Program Cost Adjustment Factor (EPCAF). The EPCAF is an element of the energy charge paid by residential and commercial customers that funds investments in renewable generating resources as well as energy-efficiency programs. This is a per-kilowatt-hour charge collected from all customers at a flat rate of $0.0027/kWh.
What is SRP's commitment to renewable energy?
SRP continually evaluates ways to expand our use of environmentally sensitive supply and demand-side options, explores additional ways to displace the use of fossil fuels, and provides opportunities for the introduction of new technologies and ideas.
SRP has established a goal that 15% of our retail sales will be met by sustainable resources no later than 2025. These solar incentive program help SRP achieve our goals.