COMMUNITY SOLAR IS FOR YOU!

If you get your electricity from an investor owned utility in MA or NY, you can be part of a shared community array.

Community-Owned Solar - You own part of a community solar project

  • Who can participate: Renters, Homeowners, For-Profits

  • You purchase panels and co-locate them in a shared array 

  • You get the federal tax credit and renewable energy credits

  • You pay for system operations and maintenance each month

  • All of the members pay for the panels up front and then get the power the panels produce for 20-25 years!

Community Solar Subscription - You purchase the energy from a shared solar project for a discount on your electric bill

  • Who can participate: Renters, Homeowners, Municipalities, Nonprofits and For-profits

  • You sign up for a share of the energy produced by the shared solar array

  • You receive a credit on your electric bill for the power produced by your share of the array

  • You pay each month for the credit at a 15% discount (for example, if you get a credit worth $100, you pay Co-op Power $85 for the subscription and receive $15 to lower your electricity bill)

If you're interested in more info, send Cagney Houlihan an email - solar@cooppower.coop - with your phone, email, address, and a copy of your electric bill (all pages please) and she can let you know about your options!

Solar to Benefit Your Community

Co-op Power has developed a wide range of models that communities can use to build community solar projects – from small panel projects to large arrays. Because we operate on a not-for-profit basis (and because we're cooperatively owned by over 1,200 households), the value is returned to people and communities. We have worked out the legal and accounting structures so that communities can install a large solar array and share the electricity, net metering credits, renewable energy credits, and other benefits created by the system.

Want to learn more about Community Shared Solar for your home?

Please contact our staff for more information or to get started!

Email: solar@cooppower.coop

Community Owned Solar

  • Direct Ownership: Participants receive the full set of state and federal incentives for owning solar

  • Shared Costs: By co-locating with other households, the cost to each participant is reduced

  • Optimal Site: Your solar panels can be installed at a site with great solar exposure

  • Operation Guarantee: Co-op Power will operate and maintain the system for 20 years

Download MA Participant Package Here

Download MA Site Host Guide Here

Watch our MA Community Solar Training Here

What is Community Solar?

Community Solar projects are solar electric systems that are built, financed, and used by you and members of your community -- your friends, neighbors, and businesses that you care about. Co-op Power’s Community Solar program helps communities to build cooperatively owned solar arrays that are controlled by local communities, where both the financial benefits and the clean electricity are kept close to home. 

Ownership matters. If we own our energy resources, they’re ours to steward and control. As advocates for local ownership, we’ve developed a wide range of financing options to help homeowners, renters, businesses and communities own their own solar installations. The benefits of ownership include the right to have a say in the management of the project and access to profit-sharing.

Diagram of the Community Owned Solar Model

Diagram of the Community Owned Solar Model