Shared Solar in the US: Do you Pre-Qualify?
Shared Solar in the US: Do you Pre-Qualify?
By Laurel Passera
April 11, 2013
Choose any of the following that may apply:
A) Do you have a shaded roof or one that is not structurally designed to bear load?
B) Do you rent or share your roof with other households or businesses?
C) Is your home or business in an historic district or one with strict aesthetic building codes?
D) Do you have little interest in maintaining an on-site solar energy system?
If you are interested in solar energy and answered yes to any of the above questions - Congratulations! - you are officially pre-qualified to participate in a shared solar program. Shared solar, also known as community solar, allows people to pool their resources into a shared system, without having to host a system on their own property. It provides a fitting solution to the numerous obstacles to renewable energy adoption, some of which were laid out in the above quiz.
Shared solar programs are sprouting up around the country with remarkable speed we know because we have been tracking their progress. In fact, this Shared Solar Program Comparison Chart includes the basic details of the programs we have compiled in collaboration with the Solar Electric Power Association. We are tracking them, not only to understand how program structure is evolving for shared solar, but also to provide a resource for utilities and others who are contemplating starting a shared renewable energy program of their own.
Of course, this chart should be accompanied by a disclaimer: as these programs are always evolving and new programs are cropping up each month, the data will continue to evolve. To keep it up to date, we will need your help. Do you know of a project that is missing from the chart or see information that is incorrect or outdated? Please let us know so we can update it.
As you can probably tell ...
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2013/04/shared-solar-do-you-pre-qualify?cmpid=SolarNL-Saturday-April13-2013