Delaware Solar Guide

Delaware has put in a great deal of effort into promoting solar power systems, which makes it one of the better states to made the early switch to a renewable energy package. The series of incentives available to residents of Delaware include solar rebates, property tax credit, and net-metering, which are all featured here –

Delaware State Solar Payback Time

The average payback time for a standard-sized solar energy system (5kW) is about 5 years.
Delaware energy rates are higher than the national average at 13.55 cents/kWh. If you installed a 5kW system you would save approx. $793 per year on your electricity bill ($66/month).

Delaware State Solar Rebate

The state of Delaware provides an exceptional rebate package through the Green Energy Program which helps offset the initial installation costs of PV equipment. Rebates are split between the cooperative, municipal, and investor-owned electric companies. A Delaware electric cooperative customer is able to claim $900 per kW for the first 5kW and $450 per kW after that, which increases to a maximum of $7500. While a customer of the investor-owned utility (Delaware Power) can claim a higher sum, which is $1250 per kW for the first 5kW, $750 per kW up to 10kW, and a further $350 per kW up to 50kW – resulting in a maximum incentive of $15000. Rebate packages from the municipal utilities differ greatly, which can range from $0 to $15000.

Delaware State Tax Credit

Delaware is somewhat lacking in this department and isn’t offering a tax credit for solar energy installations– although this might be forgiven if you consider the impressive state rebates and performance incentives.

Delaware State Tax Exemptions

Delaware is a state with no sales tax, so a tax exemption for solar energy system just doesn’t apply here. Although the installed PV equipment is exempt from property tax, which can be quite a big deal considering the increase in value a typical property achieves is approx. 20x the annual utility savings

Delaware Renewable Energy Policies

The Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) in the state of Delaware is quite strong with a mandate to produce at least 25% of its energy from renewable source by the year 2026. Delaware is taking a gradual approach to reaching its target, which currently stands at 8.5% of its energy coming from natural sources. This will increase to 19% by the year 2019-2020 rising at a rate of 1.5% per year, and then to increase to 25% by the year 2025-2026 rising at a rate of 1% per year. The RPS will mandate that at least 3.5% of its electricity sales come from solar energy.

Delaware Net Metering

Delaware’s net-metering laws are pretty clear-cut with a customer able to claim a credit back on their electricity bill for the excess energy generated, which is the amount of energy produced but won’t be used. If a customer continues to hold surplus electricity that spans an entire year, a choice is given to either continue rolling the credit over to the next bill or elect for a cash refund to be issued.