As the nation increasingly transitions towards clean energy, towns and communities are at the forefront of this movement. As more renewable energy technologies are deployed, more communities are becoming aware of the financial and environmental benefits of solar adoption. Below, you’ll find six ways that community solar initiatives can empower your community to embrace clean energy together.
- Clean energy for everyone –If you live in a bustling metropolitan area or are surrounded by buildings with small rooftop space, chances are you don’t have access to or qualify for a rooftop solar installation or on-site solar system. When you sign up for a community solar subscription, the energy becomes accessible to the entire local community, regardless of individual building constraints. Everyone benefits from it!
- Immediate savings – Rising energy costs impact everyone. When you sign up for a no-cost solar subscription, your business becomes part of an interconnected system that makes electricity more affordable. Once the solar array goes live, you’ll earn solar credits from the energy you generate from the array. It is important to note that this array does not replace your utility, so you’re not trading one energy source for another.
- Supports energy independence – In our blog, we’ve explored the value of energy independence and how it can lead to a more sustainable environment. Community solar helps decrease our dependency on fossil fuels and mitigate exposure to pricing volatility. Although the energy from the solar arrays used in community solar goes directly back into the grid, the energy produced helps your business gain control of its own power supply, contributing to enhanced energy independence.
- Free subscription creates budget certainty – For many, the high costs of maintenance and installation fees may pose barriers. However, when members of your local community collectively decide to invest in a community solar subscription, everyone participates in making clean energy accessible. With Catalyst Power’s free subscription-based service to a local solar farm in your area, you can enjoy the benefits without the burden of upfront expenses. This free enrollment is more cost-efficient and consumer-friendly.
- More local energy saves the environment – According to Morgan Stanley’s Buildings & Parking Lots: Ready for a Recharge? report, U.S. commercial properties have the potential to host 328GW of solar. By encouraging greater participation from more commercial and industrial properties in local solar farm subscriptions, there will be fewer greenhouse gas emissions and power plants that produce them.
- Grid resilience – Community solar bolsters grid resilience because the energy generation is localized. Each city or town that participates in a community solar subscription keeps the grid stable and delivers power to “…critical facilities during a grid outage or strengthen grid operations,” as stated in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s Technical Potential and Meaningful Benefits of Community Solar in the United States report. This decentralized approach ensures an uninterrupted power supply for your community, even during short-term grid outages, while protecting the grid.
When you partner with Catalyst Power and subscribe to a local solar farm in your community, we turn your business into a local asset. Joining a community solar subscription has significant benefits that echo throughout your community. You can help make this clean energy solution available to everyone, with no upfront costs for maintenance and installation, and reduce your monthly utility bills at the same time. Talk to one of our Energy Experts today to learn more.
