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I had a 6.7 kW solar system installed here in the Bay Area late last year, and you can beat the costs stated in this article by quite a lot if you shop around.
by lafay 11y ago
I had a 6.7 kW solar system installed here in the Bay Area late last year, and you can beat the costs stated in this article by quite a lot if you shop around. The best bids I got were around $3.30/watt installed -- that's $2.31/watt with the 30% federal tax credit figured in.
For my particular location, assuming a 25 year system lifespan, I calculate LCOE of 5.6 cents/kWh. Way, way cheaper than PG&E. Even without the tax credit, it's still a significant savings at 8 cents/kWh LCOE.
Of course this math only makes sense if you're reasonably sure you're going to stay put for a significant portion of those 25 years.
- tertius 11y agoDoes this include storage?
- lafay 11y agoNo storage. This is a grid-tied system that exports power onto the grid during times when I am a net producer, for which I get credited at retail rates.
- Domenic_S 11y agoRetail rates? Are you sure? (PG&E?)
- lafay 11y agoYes, quite sure. However, the credits can only offset the "debits" from the times when you are a net importer from the grid (night, cloudy, etc). PG&E sends a once annual true-up statement where you pay for your excess annual kWh (assuming consumed kWh > produced kWh). If you are net exporter on an annual basis (produced kWh > consumed kWh) PG&E only pays wholesale rates for those at ~$0.04/kWh. They used to pay nothing if you were a residential net annual exporter, but after recent change in CA state law, they now have to actually cut you a check.
- pilom 11y agoYeah my system was way lower than $3.50/watt last year too. Their numbers are surprisingly out of date for being 2 years old.
- ww520 11y agoEven when you sell the house, the solar system's cost can be factored into the selling price. The new owner is getting the reduced electric bill for the next 30 years. Surely that can be reflected in the higher value of the house.