Austin Energy - Commercial Solar PV Rebate Program

Austin Energy offers commercial and nonprofit customers two ways to reduce solar installation costs: a capacity-based incentive providing an upfront payment (up to $1.00 per Watt for nonprofits or $0.70 per Watt for commercial systems under 100 kW), or a performance-based incentive earning credits on your bill based on monthly energy production ($0.10/kWh for systems under 400 kW, declining for larger systems). To apply, work with a participating Austin Energy solar contractor who will submit your application and guide you through the approval process, which requires you to have a commercial utility account and cannot use third-party power purchase agreements.

You can serve commercial and nonprofit customers seeking solar incentives by submitting applications on their behalf for either capacity-based upfront payments or performance-based production credits. Your customers must have Austin Energy commercial accounts at the installation site, and you'll need to coordinate with Austin Energy through a multi-step review process (including an Encumbrance Letter and Letter of Intent) before installation, then schedule city inspections and the final Austin Energy inspection to verify compliance with their Design Criteria Manual and Distribution Interconnection Guide. All systems also automatically earn standard solar bill credits applied monthly to offset electricity costs.

This rebate program serves Austin Energy's commercial and nonprofit customer base through two parallel incentive tracks: capacity-based incentives providing one-time payments up to a cap of $240,964 (at $1.00/Watt-ac for nonprofits or $0.70/Watt-dc for commercial systems ≤100 kW), and performance-based incentives providing five-year on-bill credits based on actual monthly kWh generation ($0.10/kWh for systems under 400 kW, tiered down to $0.06/kWh for systems ≥1 MW). Program mechanics involve three sequential reviews (application submission, post-agreement review, and pre-installation approval via Letter of Intent) plus final Austin Energy inspection post-installation; third-party PPAs are prohibited, and eligibility is calculated using AC kilowatts (83% of DC system rating) to determine which incentive tier applies.