California Solar Initiative

The California Solar Initiative (CSI) provides various financial incentives for solar installation on your home or business. Over the next decade, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), through CSI, will provide over $2.1 billion in incentives for existing residential homes and existing (and new) commercial, industrial and agricultural properties.

CSI Background

As part of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's Million Solar Roofs Program, California has set a goal to create 3,000 megawatts of new, solar produced electricity by 2017. CSI supports this goal with financial incentives to promote cleaner energy for the state and help lower the cost of solar energy systems for consumers. By installing solar on your home or business, you can benefit from these incentives.

CSI incentives differ by customer segment and system size, and are intended to encourage high performing systems. CSI incentives will be disbursed based on certain rates until market demand pushes the program to the next step, in which case incentives are reduced.

The incentives will be determined according to the system size, as follows:

Expected Performance Based Buydown (EPBB) Incentives:

For systems less than 50 kW, the incentive will be a one-time incentive payment.

Performance Based Incentives (PBI):

System larger than 50 kW will be paid on actual energy produced on a monthly basis for 5 years. The maximum incentive provided is for 1 MW (although customers may install up to 5 MW). Customers with any system size may also opt into PBI.

Incentive amounts will decline according to schedules set by each program, declining to zero by 2017.