Solar Incentive Program starts third year

The Minnesota Department of Commerce has announced incentive amounts for Made in Minnesota solar panels for the third year (2016) of the 10-year, $15-million-a-year Made in Minnesota Solar Incentive Program. This program is available to customers of Xcel Energy, who install solar electric systems (also known as solar photovoltaic [PV]) using solar modules certified as manufactured in Minnesota. Modules from four Minnesota companies—tenKsolar, Silicon Energy, Heliene and Itek Energy—have been certified for the program to date.

Many Twin Cities property owners have already taken advantage of the program since it was launched in 2014. All Energy Solar, a local full-service solar installer based in the Merriam Park neighborhood in Saint Paul and with roots in South Minneapolis, has completed more than 100 installations for local property owners who qualified for the Made in Minnesota Solar Incentive Program in neighborhoods throughout the area.

“There has never been a better time to go solar in Minnesota,” said Ryan Buege, All Energy Solar’s Director of Sales. “The Made in Minnesota incentive is one of the strongest incentives for homes and businesses to go solar in the entire county, and the underlying cost to install has come down over 80% in the last ten years. If you get the sun on your property, this is a program you should be considering.”

This is expected to be an especially big year for the Made in Minnesota Incentive Program because it is the last year to secure both a Made in Minnesota Incentive and a Federal Tax Credit to offset the cost of a solar installation. Currently, Federal Tax Credits for solar are set to expire on Dec. 31.

The Made in Minnesota Solar Incentive Program is administered by the Minnesota Department of Commerce with an annual budget of up to $15 million for ten years. About 50 percent of the incentives will go to residential systems and about 50 percent to commercial. Applications will be accepted annually from January 1-February 28 each year through 2023 and will be selected by lottery.

More information on Made in Minnesota program is available on the All Energy Solar website, www.allenergysolar.com.