California rebate for home battery storage begins to sunset

SAN DIEGO – A ruling was made Aug. 24, by the California Public Utilities Commission regarding the billing arrangement for future San Diego Gas & Electric solar customers. The ruling was anticipated by the industry and concerned citizens.

The previous solar agreement in SDG&E territory enabled solar customers to receive a high compensation for energy produced during the daytime and to spend half as much per unit of energy taken from the grid at night. This arrangement reflected a solar friendly time-of-use billing rate for the customers. After the Aug. 24 ruling, however, new on-peak windows have been shifted later the evening in response to the utility’s claim that peak grid demand is no longer in the daytime, but instead in the evening. The on-peak hours will now be from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., and solar customers will now be charged the highest rate for electricity when their system is not producing – in the evening.

“Now more than ever, batteries are becoming an integral piece in going solar,” Daniel Sullivan, founder and president of Sullivan Solar Power, said. “While the investor-owned utilities are trying to make solar less attractive, we are coming up with new and safe ways to make solar more cost-effective than your current bill. These new rules are only getting us closer to complete grid independence.”

While the California Public Utilities Commission ruling was met with dismay, the state of California has released a rebate incentive program for battery storage systems, which will help to alleviate the impact of this modified billing structure for solar customers. The Self Generation Incentive Program is helping homeowners purchase home storage batteries, which will allow customers to store solar energy during the less expensive daytime hours, then discharge from their battery instead of pulling from the grid during peak hours. Not only will this protect against surged prices, it will also offer protection during brownouts and blackouts. The SGIP program has been in effect since June 2017, and the final round of funding opens for SDG&E customers April 24, after which it is unclear if additional funds will be allocated to the program.

The Keefe residence in Carlsbad received the first LG Chem residential battery storage unit in the continental United States. Installed by local firm Sullivan Solar Power, the unit is a 10-kilowatt-hour, lithium-ion battery and is the same battery used in over 700,000 Chevy electric vehicles on the road now. Sullivan Solar Power is the top developer for LG Chem in the state, securing just under $600,000 in rebates for their customers.

To help educate local residents about the rebate, solar and battery integration, financing options and more, Sullivan Solar Power has teamed up with local nonprofit Climate Action Campaign. They have been hosting educational solar experiences together throughout Southern California since January. Many of these events include electric vehicle test drives and solar manufacturer exhibits after the educational solar seminars. Upcoming events can be found at http://www.sdsolarexperience.org.