Dive Brief:
- SolarCity is introducing a new service aimed at low-income housing developers and residents, where it will finance and install systems on rooftops and carports of affordable housing communities.
- Power from the systems will be distributed among common areas and individual housing units, and residents can receive credits on their utility bills.
- SolarCity said it partnered with Everyday Energy, a developer and advocate for the economically disadvantaged, to help access low-income communities.
Dive Insight:
SolarCity has launched a new service aimed at low-income housing developments, where the solar installer says it is possible for developers, builders and residents to pay less for solar than they currently pay for utility power. The company said it will finance and install solar power systems on rooftops and carports of affordable housing communities, with the electricity distributed among common areas and individual housing units.
Residents would receive credits on their utility bills based on the amount of solar electricity allocated to their units, utilizing California's virtual net metering policy that enables a multi-meter property owner to allocate a energy credits to other tenants.
“There is a critical need to expand access to solar to communities that have not traditionally experienced as much growth as others,” said Assemblymember Susan Eggman (D). “SolarCity should be commended for creating dedicated programs that target the hard to reach consumers while putting hard earned money back into the pockets of those who need it the most.”
SolarCity partnered with Everyday Energy on the offering. The low-income developer and advocate analyzes residents’ electricity usage and helps developers direct savings to individual residential units based on solar production and usage.
“We expect the collaboration between SolarCity and Everyday Energy to make it possible for a broad range of multifamily affordable housing communities to save money on energy costs that can instead be spent on food, healthcare and other critical needs,” said Everyday Energy CEO Scott Sarem in a statement.
SolarCity said the key to its new offering is the California Public Utilities Commission’s Multifamily Affordable Solar Housing program (MASH), as well as the New Solar Homes Partnership administered by the California Energy Commission. MASH helped create 22.7 MW of solar capacity across 353 projects statewide that serve multi-family affordable housing, while the NSHP provides incentives for multi-family affordable housing projects.
SolarCity's newest service is the latest in a growing trend of policies and services opening new avenues for low-income communities to access renewable energy. The most notable example is the Obama administration's slate of executive orders increasing access for renewable energy among middle-to-low income communities.
