Solar Panels in Colorado: Costs and Incentives in 2024 – NerdWallet

Putting in residential photo voltaic panels in sunny Colorado tends to be cheaper than in different states, attributable to decrease common power consumption and smaller common photo voltaic installations. Eco-friendly insurance policies on this state additionally make photo voltaic a great way to save lots of on electrical energy payments long-term.

The everyday value for an average-sized photo voltaic panel system in Colorado is $28,933 earlier than incentives, and as little as $20,253 after the federal photo voltaic tax credit score. This whole relies on the state’s median dollar-per-watt value of putting in a photo voltaic system and common residential system measurement, which was a low 9.3 kWs within the second half of 2023.

The median value per watt of put in capability, $3.10, is among the costlier choices within the U.S. However the common system measurement in Colorado is on the decrease finish at 9.3 kW. This can be influenced by Colorado web metering guidelines that particularly enable web metering for methods underneath 10 kW. Common month-to-month consumption of electrical energy can be comparatively low in Colorado, with the typical family consuming 572 kWh of power per thirty days, in response to EnergySage [0]

Some Colorado clients have discovered that their native energy grid gained’t help interconnecting photo voltaic panels to the utility grid with out pricey upgrades. For instance, Xcel Power, Colorado’s largest utility firm, instructed a house owner he’d must pay $7,000 for a brand new transformer to get his photo voltaic panels linked to the grid as a result of his neighborhood’s system couldn’t help one other photo voltaic set up, The Colorado Solar reported.

“Interconnection is admittedly necessary,” says Mac Scott, communications director for Colorado Photo voltaic & Storage Affiliation (COSSA). “Householders have run into being accountable for upgrades required to make renewable power doable. Anyone might get to the tip of this funding and discover out that there’s an surprising value.”

The excellent news is that Senate Invoice 218 [0]

Colorado’s web metering settlement gives one-to-one credit score while you promote again photo voltaic power to the grid for residential methods as much as 10kWs. Internet metering is a billing conference that offers you credit score for extra energy your system produces through the day, which will be utilized to electrical energy prices throughout darkish or cloudy occasions of day when your system is utilizing extra energy than it is producing. One-to-one web metering means you get 1 kW of credit score towards your electrical invoice for each 1 kW your photo voltaic panels generate. This coverage, designed to encourage folks to go photo voltaic, makes it simple for residents with photo voltaic to maintain electrical energy payments as little as doable. Not all states supply web metering, a lot much less one-to-one web metering.

In Colorado, for those who produce extra electrical energy than you utilize, you could possibly find yourself with a adverse web utilization stability for electrical energy and credit in your account. These credit roll over indefinitely till you terminate service together with your utility, at which level any remaining credit are misplaced.

As extra photo voltaic panels are put in in Colorado, web metering agreements might change.

A $156 million grant from the Environmental Safety Company known as Colorado Photo voltaic For All permits income-qualified candidates to use for and obtain entry to solar energy. The construction of the plan and utility course of remains to be in growth on the time of publishing.

Colorado additionally has quite a lot of domestically administered rebates and incentives, a few of which residents can apply for by means of Power Sensible Colorado. The out there incentives range based mostly on location. Within the Roaring Fork Valley, as an example, residents can get rebates for 25% of a mission’s value, or as much as $2,500, for each residential photo voltaic panel methods and storage methods.

Nonetheless, many utilities don’t take part in Power Sensible Colorado. To cowl your bases, it’s price asking your utility supplier if it gives incentives or rebates. You too can search the Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Effectivity (DSIRE) , a mission maintained by the North Carolina State College, to seek out out about advantages.

Photo voltaic batteries, which let you retailer the electrical energy your property generates, add substantial value to a photo voltaic panel set up. Since Colorado has one-to-one web metering, batteries may not prevent a lot in your electrical invoice. However they’ll present backup energy within the occasion of an outage, which will be particularly helpful in distant areas with harder-to-access energy utility strains.

Colorado’s common put in battery value ranges from $16,575 to $22,425 earlier than the federal tax credit score kicks in, in response to 2024 EnergySage knowledge. This will add a few years to the payback interval to your photo voltaic panel system.

The state of Colorado gives a ten% tax credit score towards the acquisition worth of power storage methods like battery backups. It’s utilized the point-of-sale, so your battery storage installer will usually apply the low cost while you pay.