Mecklenburg County Extends Solar Deadline, Slashes Prices by 30 Percent

Solarize Charlotte-Mecklenburg pushed back its signup deadline to Nov. 28. Prices dropped more than 30 percent per watt after federal tax credits changed. The program started in June to help households install solar panels at lower costs, and more than 280 homes have joined since then.

Erin Stanforth manages county sustainability and resiliency. She explained how bulk purchasing works. "The more people that sign up, the lower the price is," she said. Every participant gets panels from one installer, Renu Energy Solutions, which keeps costs down.

Homeowners can claim 30 percent back through federal tax credits, but there's a catch. Systems must be installed and running before 2025 ends. A budget bill passed weeks after the program launched, and it altered who gets the money back.

"There was an onslaught of applicants to solar just in general, not just with our program, because of the expiring tax credit, and so as a result of that, there's been a mass install kind of craze," said Stanforth, according to Yahoo News.

Officials first promised tax credit savings to those who signed up by Aug. 8. They extended it by a month and slashed prices when demand surged. "It's in the hopes that more people would be able to sign up and be engaged in the program," Stanforth said.

Early participants already see results. Spence Rogers got his panels and battery backup weeks ago. His power bill should shrink fast. "At this point, I'm providing considerably more power than I'm using, so I'm sending power back to the grid," he said. Excess electricity flows back to Duke Energy.

Every household that signed a contract chose battery backup with their panels. "If there is a power outage, you have a battery so you have a natural generator to keep power going," Mike Jeffries, another program participant, said. Batteries mean lights stay on when storms knock out power lines.

Duke Energy offers up to $9,000 through its Power Pair program for battery systems. Homes with batteries can run almost entirely on their own electricity, which means less strain on the grid when everyone else needs power.

Stanforth wants the program to make the county greener and tougher against outages before it closes. Homes and businesses across Mecklenburg can apply.

The deadline hits Nov. 28. Renu Energy Solutions handles installations for everyone who signs up.