Many of Alberta’s communities offer incentives for local residents to implement solar. Check with your local government to see if they offer a solar program. Some of the municipal incentives in Alberta include:
Town of Banff Solar Production Incentive: Paid out of a local environmental reserve, this program incentivizes residential or commercial solar projects of 2kW or above. Successful project applicants will qualify for a seven-year incentive agreement with the Town of Banff, paid quarterly based on solar system production. The program has capacity limits. If necessary, incentive recipients will be selected by lottery. Min system size is 2 kW, one application per property.
Brazeau County Energy Efficiency Rebate Program: Offers a $0.90/Watt rebate for a maximum of $10,000 for your solar panels installation. Your system will have to be designed and installed by a qualified installer and grid-connected in accordance with the Alberta’s Micro-Generation Regulation. Off-grid system can qualify for the same amount of solar rebate.
City of Medicine Hat Solar Program: Eligible installations of solar systems of 1.5 kW and above qualify for an incentive equal to $1,000 per kW to a maximum rebate amount of $5,000. The program is available to all City of Medicine Hat residential Electric and/or Natural Gas Utility customers one time only per residential address.
Starland County Solar Initiative: Through the Starland Solar Initiative residents were eligible to receive a solar installation grant of $.50 per watt up to a maximum of $5,000. As part of the initiative, a Solar Implementation Toolkit was created to provide guidance and tools to help other communities administer a similar program.
City of Edmonton: is offering residents $0.50/watt towards the cost of the system, which is roughly 15% of the cost of going solar! Plus in partnership with Alberta Ecotrust there are also environmental grants available to local community facilities to help them reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support transformation to energy conserving lifestyles. Grants can be used for various projects, including installation of solar panels, and are available to non-profits, community leagues, schools and charities.
Ask your solar panel installer if he’s familiar with the local solar grants and incentives programs. To make sure you are getting the best solar system at the best price, fill out a request form and get free quotes from Alberta solar installers that cover your area.