Implementation of a wide spread community solar program in the District provides a classic case of business model innovation, turning the challenge of home ownership and a large transient community into an opportunity. Ultimately, everyone can take advantage of a “Big Roof”.
Community solar programs seem to be one of the best options to drive energy efficiency for District given the geography, demographics, and varying transient resident population. These programs allow customers who do not: own their homes, have access to adequate roof space to buy solar power, or the credit worthiness to procure solar assets to participate in the sustainable energy movement. Community solar is often provided in three models: co-ops, municipal, and investor-owned utilities (IOU). For co-ops, member-owners’ interest in community solar enables them to develop a shared program quickly. Municipal utilities leverage state and local government incentives to bring community solar projects to fruition. And IOUs, in response to state-level legislative directives partner with sustainable industry players to implement new community tailored program models.
According to our research, community solar has gained a foothold in the US market during the past five years and is about to reach its pivot point for real growth. Utilities are finding that: community solar allows them to grow their solar generation portfolios, developers are seizing the opportunity to expand their business offerings, and more customers have the chance to buy solar power. Thus community solar is evolving into a growth engine for distributed solar resources.
A community solar program for the District can maximize economies of scale by eliminating the need for participants to physically have solar panels on their roof in order to benefit from solar. For example, in this “roofless solar” option, commercial facilities with large, new roofs can install 200+ kW incentivized solar systems, decreasing the energy demand of some of the largest energy consumers in the District. These customers then turn over their Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs) to the local District-based Electric Service Provider (ESP). The ESP, in turn, provides income-qualified users at multi-family locations that sign-up for the program with a bill credit. This program benefits the commercial facilities by lowering energy costs, helps ESPs comply with their renewable portfolio standards, and benefits the local community by lowering participating income-qualified users monthly energy costs without requiring them to cover maintenance on a solar system on their own roof.
Implementation of a wide spread community solar program in the District provides a classic case of business model innovation, turning the challenge of home ownership and a large transient community into an opportunity. Ultimately, everyone can take advantage of a “Big Roof”.
