Community Solar offers an unprecedented opportunity for New Jersey residents to save on their electric bills. Until this year, solar was only available to property owners with a good roof. Now, community solar is a way to reap the benefits of solar energy without dealing with any construction or fronting any of the cost. Let’s repeat: the solar project will NOT be installed on your roof – instead, through a subscription to an off-site solar project, you can save up to 10% on your electric bills!
This may seem too good to be true, but community solar is the real deal – and it is highly regulated by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. Unlike the annoying guys and gals we’ve all seen in the supermarket, the savings, typically 10%, are clearly stated and guaranteed.
Here are three reasons why you should consider subscribing to a New Jersey community solar project:
1. You save 10% on your electric bills - guaranteed
Community solar guarantees that you save 10% on your electricity bills. It works like this: first, you subscribe to a community solar project in your local area. The solar developer will allocate solar panels to you and they will produce electricity that goes into your local grid system. Second, all of the electricity generated from your solar panels will be credited to your electric bill every month. And third, you pay your subscription to the solar company – 90% the normal cost of your electric bills – and save the remaining 10%!
Let’s suppose you’re normally paying $150/month for electricity. In a typical month, you will get a credit of $150 on your utility bills, such as the bill you may get from PSE&G. You then pay 90% of the credit – $135 – to the solar company. In turn, you keep the $15. This translates to $180 of savings each year – more than a month worth of electric costs, still in your pocket!
2. You become part of a solution
The climate crisis is real and only getting worse. We have recently seen climate disasters ranging from Superstorm Sandy, the electric grid failure in Texas, and the extreme heat waves on the West Coast. It can be overwhelming – where do I start, and what can I do? We need to use less fossil fuel, which powers much of the Garden State. Community solar allows New Jersey to use clean energy, support grid resiliency, and create local jobs. Participating in community solar means you will be a part of a solution to our current energy and environmental crisis, improving life for future generations.
Hoboken after Superstorm Sandy. Photograph by Emile Wamsteker | Bloomberg via Getty
3. You support your local community
Community solar projects are local projects. They are built within the community for the community. By joining a community solar project, you can also help local organizations raise funds. For every person a community organization helps us to sign up, we make a donation to that organization. It is a win-win scenario for everyone.
Jersey City: GVM019 - Greetings from by Victor Ving. Photo by Wally Gobetz courtesy of Creative Commons.
To sign up for a community solar project in Northern New Jersey check out our website here for a local project. If you’d like to discuss partnering with us contact us at info@crauderueff.com.