Affordable Solar ENERGY for North Texas

Residential Solar - Courtesy solarcity.com

Last year, TXU announced it was partnering with SolarCity in an effort to provide affordable residential solar power to North Texas homes. The plan allowed residential customers the option to lease a system for a low monthly fee with no upfront cost. Included in the monthly fee was installation, monitoring, repairs and insurance. Under the plan, "a 4-kilowatt residential solar system, appropriate for a typical 3-4 bedroom home, would initially cost approximately $35 a month...Customers could purchase the same system outright for $26,000, not including rebates or federal tax incentives".

This summer, a new plan was announced to encourage and accelerate the adoption of solar power in North Texas. Under the new plan, a "solar fund will provide a $1,000 incentive for up to 5,000 new or current TXU Energy residential customers who sign up for the solar offer".

The push by the utility to attract new solar customers is a very positive sign and a very big step toward our goal of advancing sustainable energy practices. Given the strain we all feel in today's economic climate, we can certainly all appreciate when a company like TXU makes energy more affordable. I find myself wondering why I don't have solar panels all over my own roof yet.