Energy Storage
Modern energy storage systems are no maintenance lithium based battery systems that can be used to backup your home power in case of an outage. If you have solar panels or install solar, the batteries can be set up to be charged by the sun when the grid goes down.
Green Mountain Power is now offering incentives for customers to install lithium technology energy storage systems. And, GMP is giving customers two options to get their incentive. You can either get a lump sum in the beginning or get a monthly bill credit for 10 years that is $9.65 per KW or get a one time payment of $850 per KW.
There are a few complications, though. First, to participate you need reliable WIFI access in your house. That means you need high speed internet to your house. For some in Vermont, this is still a challenge. If your internet service goes out for more than a month, the agreement with GMP is ended. You can rejoin by paying a $15 reinstatement fee.
To participate, you need to have your energy storage system set up so it can charge from the utility. This is a great approach. However, if you have solar panels and want the federal tax credit to apply to the energy storage system as well – this is a 30% tax credit available for this year – you cannot have the battery charged by the utility. It must only be charged by the solar panels. So, essentially, you can have one or the other, federal tax credit or GMP benefit, but not both!
For more details on the GMP program, you can go the link below.