There’s no secret that California has a major crisis on its hands when it comes to its electrical grid, and with increased heat waves and wildfires year over year, the need to find a solution is paramount.
With rolling blackouts currently being used as just one solution to the behemoth of an issue to take pressure off of the grid when demand is at an all time high, such as during wildfire season, The California Public Utilities Commission approved a $1 Billion Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) to help combat the issue.
The SGIP program is an incentive program that encourages residents to install batteries into their homes. If you currently use PG&E, Southern California Edison or San Diego Gas and Electric, you might be one of the lucky ones to get rebates starting at $26,400 to simply install batteries into your home, making it almost free– and no, it’s not too good to be true.
“SGIP is actually nothing new to the state of California, it's been around for the past 5 years, but what is new about the program is the fact that people are using it now because of residents’ experience with constant blackouts,” said Mike Abadi, the General Manager of Stellar Energy. “The new program has been widely successful, especially in Northern California where funds have basically run out. It is an extremely important program for vulnerable people with health conditions or living in firezones to take note of– especially if they live in Southern California where funds are still available.”
The SGIP is for people either living in firezones or those who have experienced public safety power shutoffs, or PSPS events. Residents must fall under one of those two qualifiers. In addition to needing one of the two aforementioned qualifiers, having a medical condition that requires electricity or having a water well with an electric pump are the others.
“Think of people who use a CPAP machine, or need to refrigerate their medications so they don’t lose the medication’s effectiveness if the power goes out... or people who have a water well with an electric pump will also be people who are very dependent on electricity staying on,” Abadi said. “So many people we work with have no idea they easily qualify for thousands of dollars in rebates to simply have batteries installed into their homes.”
Batteries installed into homes, like the Tesla Powerwall, for example, is exactly what the SGIP is– rebates that end up costing almost nothing to California homeowners so that they feel incentivised to install batteries into their homes.
“These battery installations times millions of residents actually takes a lot of pressure off of the state’s electric grid, it’s a mutually beneficial program for both the state and the people who live in it,” Abadi said. “It’s a truly unique program we are bringing awareness to, and our customers are always so happy to find out they can get it.”
As the renewable energy industry continues to grow exponentially and spread into other U.S. states– the use of energy storage or batteries in addition to solar has taken installations to the next level. Due to declining costs for customers, and rebate programs offered to them, becoming more energy independent is now more accessible than ever.
Stellar Energy which has outposts in both Northern and Southern California are currently working to inform residents of what’s available to them. Interested to find out if you can get a rebate and join the movement? Contact us today!