Texas

The Residential and Hard-to-Reach Standard Offer Programs provide incentives to "Project Sponsors" to install energy efficiency measures in Xcel's service area. Residential customers should contact a participating sponsor (awarded at the first of each calendar year) through the web site provided. All payments to Project Sponsors are based on kW and kWh savings. Examples of eligible projects include:

Ceiling, wall, attic insulation

Installing energy efficient windows

HVAC retrofit

Duct efficiency improvement

Lighting

Photovoltaics and Solar Hot Water

Note that Xcel Energy provides the incentive directly to the Project Sponsor, who then determines what to do with the incentive payment. Charges vary by Project Sponsor and no incentives are paid directly to the consumer by Xcel. 

Oncor Electric Delivery offers rebates to its customers that install photovoltaic (PV) systems on homes or other buildings.* Oncor customers of all rate classes (e.g., residential, commercial) are eligible to participate in the program. The term "customer" means "the entity with financial responsibility for paying the electric bill for the meter behind which the distributed solar energy equipment is to be installed." Rebates may be assigned to the customer, a service provider, or a third party.

Rebate Amount 

In 2014, rebates are a one-time payment of $538.79 per kilowatt (kW)-AC and $0.41 per kilowatt hour (kWh)-AC for both residential and non-residential customers (e.g., businesses, governments, nonprofits, etc.). Under this incentive scheme, a typical 5.3 kW residential rooftop PV system can earn a total rebate of approximately $8,600.

The maximum rebate is equivalent to 20% of the most recent funding allocation. Individual systems must be 1 kW or larger, unless they are to be used by schools for educational purposes. In addition, systems may not be sized to produce energy in excess of that required to meet annual on-site energy consumption. Customers may only apply for one rebate per point of service, as defined by a unique meter ESI-ID number. Customers with multiple points of service are therefore permitted to apply for multiple rebates, subject to a 20% maximum rebate cap and other program limits (e.g., limits on total incentives available to a single customer).

Eligibility

Systems must be new, connected to the grid on the customer side of the meter and meet all applicable code and utility interconnection requirements. All installations must be performed by service providers who meet specific program eligibility requirements. Service providers are also subject to ongoing quality assurance standards and are required to attend technical training sessions. Installations may be subject to a variety of inspection and performance monitoring requirements in the short- and long-term. System owners will initially retain title to renewable energy certificates (RECs) produced by their system. However, Oncor reserves the right to claim RECs produced by rebated systems at a later time.

For more information, visit the program website.

*The Oncor program began as a pilot program in 2009 and provided rebates in 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Oncor pays incentives to eligible Service Providers who market, sell/lease, and install solar photovoltaic systems to commercial and residential customers served by Oncor.

** Oncor reserves the right to raise the incentive cap if the total amount of incentives for reserved projects is not sufficient to meet the program incentive budget.

Oncor provides incentives to Service Providers who install approved energy efficiency measures in business, government, nonprofit, and worship facilities in Oncor's service area. Service providers can include energy service companies (ESCOs), energy consultants, contractors, individual customers, and retail electric providers. Generally, incentives are paid based on the kW and kWh saved and verified through a measurement and verification process. However, certain types of improvement projects have been assigned pre-determined "deemed savings" estimates by the Texas Public Utilities Commission (PUCT) and do not require verification. Currently, 17 types of cooling projects and nine types of lighting projects have deemed savings assigned and do not require measurement and verification if they are installed to the required specifications. Project sponsor incentives are capped at 20% of the incentive budget in a given budget year. 

The Guadalupe Valley Electric Cooperative (GVEC) offers rebates to its member customers for the installation of photovoltaic (PV) systems, solar water heaters, solar water wells, and wind electric systems within its service territory. In order to be eligible under the current program, systems must be installed after January 1, 2014. Rebate amounts and limitations vary by technology.

In order to qualify for a rebate, systems must be new and meet a variety of equipment, warranty, and installation requirements that vary by technology. All units must be installed by a program approved contractor according to the manufacturer's specified procedures and codes.

Grid-connected renewable electricity systems must meet the standards of the National Electric Code (NEC) as well as the GVEC's own interconnection rules, code, and by-laws. Interconnection will take place at the GVEC's dual-register meter and electricity produced by the system will be purchased by the GVEC at the utility's renewable energy rate (i.e., not a net metering arrangement). The utility reserves to the right to inspect rebated systems in order to verify that they comply with program guidelines.

Note: The PV rebate is currently closed. 

Farmers Electric Cooperative offers incentives for its residential and agricultural members to increase the energy efficiency of eligible homes and facilities. In order to receive rebates, equipment and installation must meet program requirements. Rebates are available for qualifying air source heat pumps, geothermal heat pumps, and electric water heaters. 

El Paso Electric (EPE) offers rebates to both residential and non-residential customers that install photovoltaic (PV) systems on homes or buildings. Rebates are offered at a flat rate of $0.75 per watt-DC for both residential and non-residential customers with a maximum incentive of $7,500. 

All incentives are offered at $0.75/watt-dc. Rebates may be assigned to the customer, a service provider, or a third party. The 2015 program budget is $212,500. Past program budgets were: $141,300 (2010), $1,350,000 (2011), $1,150,000 (2012), $425,000 (2013) and $402,000 (2014).

EPE claims ownership of renewable energy certificates (RECs) produced by systems that receive incentives.

Eligibility 
 

According to the 2015 program, the incentive level for all customers is limited to the applicable incentive level for a 10 kWdc system.

Individual systems must be sized between 1 kilowatt (kW) and 50 kW (per S.B. 1910, which came into effect June 2011) to be eligible for the incentive. In addition, systems may not be sized to produce energy in excess of that required to meet annual on-site energy consumption. Customers may only apply for one rebate per point of service, as defined by a unique meter ESI-ID number. Customers with multiple points of service are therefore permitted to apply for multiple rebates, subject to other program requirements.

Systems must be new, connected to the grid on the customer side of the meter, meet minimum estimated performance requirements (80% of optimum), and meet all applicable code and utility interconnection requirements. All equipment (i.e., modules, inverters, and meters) must meet standard quality and safety requirements (e.g., inverters must certified under UL-1741 or its equivalent). All installations must be performed by service providers who meet program eligibility requirements. Service providers are also subject to ongoing quality assurance standards and are required to attend technical training sessions. Installations may be subject to a variety of inspection and performance monitoring requirements in the short- and long-term. Special considerations and rules may apply to new construction projects, apartments, rentals, condominiums, leased properties, large companies, and government agencies. Interested parties are encouraged to contact the program manager prior to submitting an application.

CPS Energy, San Antonio's municipal utility, offers rebates to customers who install solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on their homes, schools, or businesses. There are four rebate "tiers" available depending on customer type and whether or not the customer is using a "local" registered CPS Energy Installer.* Third-party owned systems (e.g., leased PV systems) are not eligible for rebates (a customer must make the upfront financial investment). In all tiers, final rebate levels will be determined upon a final inspection from the utility. Unfavorable shading, angles or direction may influence the final rebate amount. The rebate is available to all CPS Energy customers for systems of at least 1 kilowatt (kW)-AC. CPS Energy will offer special considerations for systems larger than 100 kW, but such systems remain eligible for rebates. The following "tiers" are in place:

Tier One
Eligibility: Schools (private or public; must be accredited and nonprofit) who use local, registered CPS Energy Installers
Amount: $2.00 per watt-AC for the first 25 kilowatts (kW) and $1.30 per watt for any additional capacity, with a maximum rebate of $80,000. 

Tier Two
Eligibility: Residential customers who use local certified CPS Energy Installers
Amount: $1.60 per watt-AC up to $25,000 maximum or 50% of rebated equipment installation labor and material costs, whichever value is less.

Tier Three
Eligibility: Commercial customers who use local certified CPS Energy Installers
Amount: $1.60 per watt-AC for the first 25 kW-AC and $1.30 per watt-AC for any additional capacity up to $80,000 maximum or 50% of rebated equipment installation labor and material costs, whichever value is less.

Tier Four
Eligibility: Residential and commercial customers who do not use local, registered CPS Energy Installers
Amount: $1.30 per watt-AC up to $25,000 maximum for residential and $80,000 for commercial

On an individual basis, rebate eligibility will be determined by a pre-inspection of the site. In order to ensure that rebated systems are efficient, safe, and productive, numerous equipment and installation requirements apply. System owners are responsible for obtaining all applicable permits and permissions required to install and operate the system and all work must be performed in accordance with all applicable federal, state, local, and manufacturer codes and standards. CPS publishes interconnection guidelines for systems smaller than 25 kW. Rules for larger systems will be determined on a case-by-case basis. Rebate recipients will be required to sign an agreement handing over all of the renewable energy credits (RECs) produced by the system to CPS Energy.

 

*CPS defines "local" as being located in CPS Energy territory with a CPS Energy electric account.

CoServ Electric Cooperative provides a rebate to its members who installation a solar energy system on their property. Customers must sign an interconnection agreement (with net metering) for on-site generation with CoServ. Any excess generation from the system will be given to CoServ without compensation.

Interested customers are encouraged to contact the utility for more details before making investment decisions.

The City of Sunset Valley offers rebates to local homeowners who install photovoltaic (PV) systems on their properties. The local rebate acts as an add-on to the PV rebates that are offered by Austin Energy to its electric customers.

The Sunset Valley rebate is $1.00 per watt (W) up to 3,000 W. In order to qualify for the Sunset Valley rebate, the system must first qualify for an Austin Energy rebate. In addition, the system installation cost must be $6 per 1,000 W or less.

The Sunset Valley rebates are in addition to the Austin Energy rebate of $2.50 per watt AC up to $15,000 per installation. In order to participate in the program, local residents must first be approved for a rebate through the Austin Energy program and meet the corresponding equipment, warranty, and installation requirements. This means that local residents of utilities other than Austin Energy are not eligible to participate in the Sunset Valley program.
 

The City of San Marcos offers a Distributed Generation Rebate Program for the installation of grid-tied renewable energy systems. The Distributed Generation Rebate Program is offered on a first-come/first-serve basis and is open to all City of San Marcos electric utility customers with an account in good standing.

Qualifying Solar PV systems are eligible for a $2.50 per Watt (W) rebate up to $5,000. Qualifying Wind Generation systems are eligible for a $1.00 per W rebate up to $5,000. Neither rebate amount can exceed 50% of the system installation costs. Renewable energy systems are required to be warranted for minimum time periods as follows:

Installation - 1 year

Wind Generator - 5 years

PV Modules - 20 years

Inverter - 5 years

Rebated products must be installed within the San Marcos electric utility service area, and must remain in use at the originating address for the lifetime of the product. Should the system be removed, the customer will be billed a pro-rated amount of the original rebate based on 80% after 1 year, 60% after 2 years, 40% after 3 years, and 20% after 4 years.

Rebate funds are not applicable to used equipment, maintenance agreements, warranties, re-roofing or structural work, batteries, or leases.