PV Costs Less than Grid Electric – Even at Today’s Prices!
There’s a common misconception that solar electric is unaffordable and expensive compared to traditional, fossil-fuel based electricity. That’s not true!
To fully appreciate the real affordability of grid-tied solar, we need to throw out the notion that solar should be evaluated like other household appliances, and not for the worry-free 40 year investments that they are.
PV prices have dropped by 40% or more in the last few years and are warranteed for 25 years (there is ample evidence that they perform for 40+ years). So as a reasonable comparison, the cost of a PV installation should be compared to the cost of pre-buying electricity over a minimum 25 year period.
Let’s look at an example of 5kw array for a homeowner:
| Costs: | Maine | New Hampshire |
| System size, in Kilowatts | 5 | 5 |
| Cost per installed W of Panels | $5.50 | $5.50 |
| Gross capital cost | $27,500.00 | $27,500.00 |
| Less: | Maine | New Hampshire |
| Federal Tax Credit Amount (30% of system cost) | $8,250 | $8,250 |
| State Rebate Amount | $2,000 | $6,000 |
| Net Capital cost | $17,250.00 | $13,250.00 |
| Effective Cost of Electricity | Maine | New Hampshire |
| Kw/hr produced Each Year | 6,750 | 6,750 |
| Cost of Electricity, Locked in for 25 Years | $0.102 kw/hr | $0.079 kw/hr |
| Savings, if Electricity is $0.16 kw/hr and stays that way for 25 years | $9,750 | $13,750 |
| Savings, if Electricity is $0.16 kw/hr today and increases by 2.5% every year for the next 25 years | $20,952 | $25,112 |
Even taking the conservative estimate of 25 years of system performance, for someone who can take advantage of the existing incentives, the average price per delivered kw/hr from a solar system is roughly half of what a kw/hr costs from the grid today!
In an uncertain economy, clean energy may just be the most reliable investment available – contact us to learn how you can lock in your energy rate for decades and reduce your carbon footprint in the process.
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