Solar Electric Rebate

Silicon Valley Power is offering incentives to make installing and generating electricity from PV systems more affordable for you. These incentives are in the form of rebates to Santa Clara residents and businesses for new installations of photovoltaic (PV) systems.

Residents are eligible for a rebate for installing a PV system which meets their existing load up to 10 Kilowatts (kW) AC in size. Rebate amounts will be reduced as SVP reaches installation targets. See the following table for schedule and current rebate level.

Residential Rebate Schedule for PV Systems under 10 kW

Residential Installed Capacity kW	kW Available per Rebate Step	Rebate $ / Watt AC	kW Remaining in Current Rebate Step
200	200	$4.50	0
400	200	$3.75	--
600	200	$3.00	195
800	200	$2.50	--
1000	200	$2.00	--
1200	200	$1.75	--
1500	300	$1.50	--
2000	500	$1.25	--
2500	500	$1.00	--
3000	500	$0.75	--

*Current Rebate Level - updated 3/18/2010

Program Requirements

All PV modules and inverters must be on the State of California Energy Commission list of eligible equipment. Please see the CEC list of approved PV modules and CEC list of approved PV inverters.
The system must come with a minimum ten year warranty against breakdown or degradation beyond 15 percent of the original system rated electrical output during the warranty period.
The system must be installed by a licensed contractor, unless installed by the SVP customer.
The system must be installed in accordance with all applicable building and national electric codes.
The system must be connected to the grid and you will be switched to a net metering rate.
You must execute an Interconnection and Net Energy Metering Agreement with the City.
You must submit a Generating Facility Application with your permit application.
You must agree to future inspections of the equipment to verify PV system performance.
Prior to installation, you must have received an energy audit by SVP within the last two years to identify all other energy efficiency opportunities in addition to PV.

Steps to Receiving your Rebate

Select a qualified PV contractor and an eligible PV system to purchase.
Complete and submit your application before installing your system, to reserve your payment.
SVP will review your application and contact you when application has been approved. Once approved, your system must be installed within twelve months.
SVP will issue your rebate payment within four to eight weeks of receiving your invoice and final building permit.

The fax number to send the completed form is 408-244-2990.

The mailing address to send your completed form is:

Solar Electric Rebates
Silicon Valley Power
1601 Civic Center Drive, Suite 200
Santa Clara, CA 95050

If you have any questions, please call the Energy Conservation Hotline - 408-244-SAVE (7283)

Finding Registered Equipment Sellers and Estimating Your Solar System Cost

The Go Solar California website has a database of registered equipment sellers. You can also go to the Find Solar website to read customer feedback and ratings of installers that were used. To estimate price, savings, and system size, you can also use their Solar Estimator.

Application and Interconnection Agreement

Solar Electric Rebate Application: Systems ≤ 100 kW (PDF: 45.6k)
Interconnection and Net Metering Agreement (PDF: 50.9k)
Generator Facility Application: Systems < 10 kW (PDF: 308k): Bring completed form when applying for Permits for your Solar Electric System.
SD 1630 (PDF: 110k): Overview of the review process of the Generator Facility Application.
SD 1631 (PDF: 332k): SVP Engineering Standards for Generator Facilities.

[Note: If you are not able to view these PDF files, go here for more information.]

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