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How Do Commercial Solar Incentives Benefit Businesses

By January 16, 2023January 17th, 2023Blog, News
Aerial view of solar panel installations on the roof of a commercial building in Morgan Hill, California.

Consider commercial solar services if you want your business to go green and commit to sustainable energy production. Solar energy is a long-term, reasonably priced investment that will lower your energy bills and offer a host of other advantages to your company.

Coldwell Solar provides business owners in California with cost-effective commercial solar power solutions to help them save money and energy. Commercial solar is a wise financial decision.

It allows you to reduce energy costs, offers protection against rising energy bills, and attracts a growing number of customers looking for businesses committed to using sustainable energy sources.

Businesses and government organizations can benefit financially from investing in solar electricity due to government incentives and significant drops in the cost of solar equipment. Solar power investments can result in both immediate returns and long-term cost benefits.

Solar energy systems are gaining popularity as sustainable energy sources. You’ve probably heard that many large firms, including Intel and Walmart, are switching to solar energy for their buildings.

You can also consider going solar even if you don’t initially believe that’s affordable for a small or medium-sized business. Now that commercial solar panels are less expensive, businesses like yours can benefit significantly from them.

Why Your Business Should Switch to Commercial Solar?

Installing solar panels for your business has various benefits. You’ll use a renewable energy source such as the sun, but you’ll also quickly get substantial financial returns on your investment. You can also claim corporate tax rebates for using solar panels.

The solar power sector has significantly been growing for years, and the cost of commercial solar installation has reduced with time. Its electrical system is reliable. That includes a primary electrical supply and an affordable backup power source.

Businesses should invest in solar panels just for cost savings. According to EnergySage, commercial business owners’ average monthly power expenses before switching to solar energy were $1,950. After switching to solar energy, these business expenses fell to around $500. That is a 75% reduction, which is a significant argument for installing solar panels at your company.

Taking advantage of commercial energy solutions like solar panels is the need of the time. Many business owners are aware of the high returns on investments solar energy offers, particularly in light of the various federal and state financial incentives offered for solar conversion.

Despite such a leap of confidence in solar energy based on the evidence of the advantages of solar electricity for businesses, the solar power industry in the United States only makes up 1% of the nation’s total electrical production. However, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, solar energy will eventually provide 40% of the country’s electricity. Adding solar panels to your company has a promising future.

Benefits of Commercial Solar Incentives for Businesses

It takes time to decide to switch your company over to solar energy. You must carefully assess where you are now regarding your energy supply and where you need to be in the future. You must consider the benefits and drawbacks, just like any investment.

You should know that investing in solar energy over the long term will require patience and a respectable return. Here are some primary benefits of commercial solar for your business below:

1. Solar Energy Reduces Costs

Your company can save money by installing solar panels in several ways. For instance, implementing solar power reduces the cost of electricity. Even though you must pay in advance for the solar installation, you can get back your costs in three to five years after the installation.

Long-term savings can help you get a solid return on your investment because solar panels have a minimum 25-year lifespan. These cost savings will eventually increase your cash flow, giving you more money to invest in new, recruiting more staff, better equipment, and other aspects of expanding your company.

Solar energy also provides you with financial security. When you are entirely or partially self-sufficient in solar energy, you are protected from price increases and inflation. If your business depends on the commercial power grid, you’ll be affected by increases in cost because of seasonal or supply shortages.

Along with being protected from inflation, you would also be shielded from rising electrical costs year after year. You’ll know your overhead expenditures if the sun supplies your private power production.

The decision to reduce electrical overheads is entirely up to you. Unless you increase your electricity load, your rate will remain constant. Additionally, knowing that you are price-protected will give you peace of mind.

2. Protection from Power Outages

When you switch to solar energy, you become your own energy provider, but you still rely on the grid for power production. You’ll have a problem at night with solar panels because they can’t produce electricity during dark hours unless you have batteries for backup storage for energy.

The practice of sending surplus electricity back to the grid in exchange for a credit that covers the cost of using the grid at night is known as net metering and is an option if your business needs power after the sun sets. However, your company also loses power if the grid goes dark during the day or at night.

Solar battery stores the extra energy your solar panels produce during the day for backup purposes. You can use that energy after sunset or during power outages on the grid.

3. Federal Tax Credit for Investment

Federal tax credit makes it more accessible to purchase solar power and backup batteries. This credit partially offsets the cost of installing solar equipment for homes or businesses, although the amount decreases yearly.

Going solar sooner rather than later will save you money because there was a tax credit of 26% available for 2022, which will drop to 22% in the year 2023 and to 10% in 2024, respectively.

Your solar energy equipment qualifies for accelerated depreciation as well. This is accomplished through a different federal program, the Modified Accelerated Cost-Recovery System (MARCS).

The MARCS initiative allows you to write off your whole solar panel system in the first year, as opposed to the conventional equipment depreciation tax deductions that typically extend over the entire life of the items. It also improves your ability to finance your solar power system and cash flow.

Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SREC) enable you to regain your equipment installation costs if you use the energy generated by your system. According to legal standards, one SREC is equivalent to 1,000 kWh. They compel power companies to take part and recognize each SREC you generate with solar equipment.

4. Durability and Sustainability of Solar Energy

Some experts predict that dependence on fossil fuels will decrease in the future because of sustainable energy production. The emissions and carbon footprint of coal and gas-fired electrical producing facilities will be more strictly regulated. This means fossil fuel generation will be more expensive, and the consumer will pay more.

Hydroelectricity is the primary energy source in regions with proper water supply to turn generators. However, the increased hydroelectric output results in more flooding, which is not ideal if the land is expensive and used for agricultural purposes.

Nuclear power facilities and other alternative electrical sources need more prospects. The future of nuclear power generation is low due to the unpredictable nature of accidents and the issues with nuclear waste. The sun is the only remaining renewable energy source. The future of low-expense electrical production lies in solar energy.

You are investing in the future of your business by switching to solar energy. By installing a self-contained solar generation system, you can protect your electrical bet just like investors do on the stock market when they speculate on future market movements. With solar electricity, you can minimize your energy consumption costs and safeguard the future of your business.

5. Energy Independence

Another significant benefit of switching to solar power is independence from sources of commercial energy supply. You can decrease your dependence on your neighborhood power provider by purchasing a self-contained solar system.

Furthermore, you will have a consistent supply of electricity, and it also reduces your overhead expenses significantly.

Commercial power outages are commonplace in many places. You might work in an electricity-sensitive field, like cold storage, where you can’t stand a power outage, or your production will fail.

Severe storms often cause power outages in many regions of the world. No matter what happens to your power grid, you’ll always have a reliable source of electricity if you rely only on your solar panel system.

6. Rebates for the California Solar Incentive Program

The Self Generation Incentive Program is available from the California Public Utilities Commission until 2024. This program subsidizes those who build a solar battery backup system and are qualifying businesses and homeowners.

This program is designed to assist the critical infrastructure and low-income communities in California so they can prepare for the upcoming wildfire and the anticipated power disruptions that go along with it.

Coldwell Solar is Your Commercial Solar Solution in California

commercial-solar-array-in-vineyard

Your business uses less fossil fuel if you have solar energy to generate electricity, which lowers pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Switching to commercial solar energy contributes to the fight against climate change and reduces your reliance on outside energy sources. The advantages of running a sustainable firm go beyond cost savings and serve as effective marketing and public relations tools.

If you want to go green and start your commercial solar project, contact Coldwell Solar for more information.

The Fed has passed a bill granting renewable energy funds, meaning an expanded tax credit for renewable energy users

Contact us to learn how you can benefit today

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