Los Angeles Solar Incentives Revised

Los Angeles Solar Incentives Revised

"Extending solar energy options to residents, businesses and even the affordable housing community will not only further help the environment, but is a creative way through which the city can help lower the financial pressure on our families."

- Jim Hahn, Mayor of Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California - September 13, 2004 [SolarAccess.com] State wide solar initiatives may be held up in the California Legislature, but that isn't keeping Los Angeles from supporting solar energy. Mayor Jim Hahn and the Los Angeles Board of Water and Power Commissioners have approved a series of revisions to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's (LADWP) Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Incentive Program, reaffirming the city's commitment to promoting and protecting renewable energy sources.

"Government's overriding mission is to improve people's quality of life, and our solar energy subsidy program helps both individual consumers by lowering their power bills and helps all of Los Angeles by lowering pollution," Hahn said. "Extending solar energy options to residents, businesses and even the affordable housing community will not only further help the environment, but is a creative way through which the city can help lower the financial pressure on our families."

LADWP's 10-year, $150 million solar PV buy-down incentive program, which began in 2000 and runs through June 2011, provides incentives that reduce the cost of installing solar electric systems. Revised program guidelines will divide incentive applicants based on the size of the project proposed. Hahn said the revisions are designed to meet the growing number of requests by Los Angeles businesses and residents, and will allow for a more equitable distribution of subsidies each year. A system's efficiency performance will factor into the incentive calculation.

Utility customers who have been on the solar incentive waiting list are ranked in order based on the date and time their application was received. No new applications, except for a limited number of affordable housing projects, will be accepted for the 2004-2005 fiscal year. Revised guidelines will be in effect until June 30, 2005, which is the end of the fiscal year. In addition, the new guidelines adjust the base incentive, consistent with other solar incentives statewide and the Los Angeles Manufacturing Credit incentive payment amounts. Next year, LADWP expects to revise the program to directly link incentive payment to actual solar output in a performance-based program for fiscal year 2005-2006.

"The LADWP is fully committed to its solar program. As of June 30, 2004, over $70 million had been expended through the solar program, including $43 million in incentives to customers supporting the installation of approximately nine megawatts of solar photovoltaic energy systems. We are working to make solar systems affordable to our customers, so no incentives will be needed in the future," said Lillian Kawasaki, LADWP assistant general manager of Environmental Affairs and Development.

For Further Information:

• LADWP Incentive Program

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