The San Joaquin Valley forms the southern half of California’s fertile Central Valley. This eight county region is the agricultural hub of California and is known for its grapes, nuts, cotton, citrus and vegetables, as well as for cattle and sheep ranching and dairy farming.
The San Joaquin Valley has also become a hub for solar energy and is home to the 45MW Avenal solar project, one of the largest in the US. The average daily solar irradiance levels near 6kWh/m2 per day and wide open spaces make this a prime region for solar deployment. However, lack of unified solar processes across the Valley’s numerous jurisdictions increases the cost of solar energy systems and has hindered full realization of the region’s solar potential.
Regional Participants
The goal of the SSTI program is to help capture this potential through solar market transformation activities that will create a more solar friendly business environment across the region. Our municipal partners include Arvin, Atwater, Clovis, Delano, Fresno, Hanford, Livingston, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin, and Visalia. These jurisdictions will form the core of a region-wide effort aimed at creating a solar friendly business environment in San Joaquin Valley. For specific information about any of our municipal partners, please select one of the jurisdictions in the left-hand column.
Financing Programs Available in the San Joaquin Valley
| FEDERAL | US Department of Housing & Urban Development’s PowerSaver Loan Program offers eligible homeowners competitive interest rate loans for up to 20 years for renewable energy improvements |
| US Department of Agriculture’s Rural Energy for America Program provides grants & loan guarantees to agricultural producers and rural small businesses | |
| US Economic Development Administration offers federal grant funding opportunities for clean energy projects | |
| STATE | California Energy Commission’s Energy Conservation Assistance Act Low Interest Loan Program manages a 1% interest loan program for public entities in California to implement energy efficiency and renewable energy projects |
| CaliforniaFIRST PACE Financing Program is available to non-residential properties, including commercial buildings, multifamily buildings with 5 units or more, industrial and agricultural properties, to finance the installation of energy improvements and repay the loan via a line item on property tax bills. | |
| Third-party financing models, including solar PPAs & leases, are valid in California for all sectors | |
| LOCAL | Figtree PACE Program is available to commercial customers to finance the installation of energy improvement and repay the loan as a line item on property tax bills |
| Educational Employees Credit Union (EECU) Energy Efficiency Loan Program offers members clean energy loans between $100 and $4,000 to finance solar energy and energy efficiency projects | |
| Umpqua Bank’s GreenStreet Lending Program offers members clean energy loans to finance solar energy and energy efficiency projects | |
| Southern California Edison (SCE) Solar Lease Program offers to lease commercial building roof space to own, install, operate, and maintain solar systems over the life of the lease | |
| Check with your local or national bank about clean energy loans or lines of credit |
Solar Incentives Available in the San Joaquin Valley
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| FEDERAL | Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credit. 30% of installed system cost may be claimed as a tax credit. There is no limit, but credit expires in 2016 | Business Energy Investment Tax Credit. 30% of installed system cost may be claimed as a tax credit. There is no limit, but credit expires in 2016. | |
| Modified Accelerated Cost-Recovery System (MACRS). Businesses may recover investments in certain property through depreciation deductions | |||
| STATE | Property Tax Exclusion for Solar Energy Systems. Residential, commercial and industrial solar energy systems are excluded from property taxes. | Property Tax Exclusion for Solar Energy Systems. Residential, commercial and industrial solar energy systems are excluded from property taxes. | |
| Feed-In Tariff. This program requires utilities to pay solar power generators with systems <3MW from all sectors for their electricity. Rates vary. | Feed-In Tariff. This program requires utilities to pay solar power generators with systems <3MW from all sectors for their electricity. Rates vary. | ||
| CSI SASH Program. The Single-Family Affordable Solar Housing program offers up to $10,000 for residential systems at low-income homes. | CSI MASH Program. The Multi-Family Affordable Solar Housing program offers $1.90/W for systems that serve common loads and $2.80/W for systems that serve tenant loads for low-income buildings. | ||
| New Solar Homes Partnership. Rebates vary, but are at least $2.25/W for this program aimed at new construction low-income single- and multi-family housing. | New Solar Homes Partnership. Rebates vary, but are at least $2.25/W for this program aimed at new construction low-income single- and multi-family housing. | ||
| UTILITY | Turlock Irrigation District Solar Rebate. The program for residential systems currently offers $1,48/W for systems <30kW or $0.17/kWh for systems >30kW, but the rebate steps down over time. | Turlock Irrigation District Solar Rebate. The program for non-residential systems currently offers $0,45/W for systems <30kW or $0.05/kWh for systems >30kW, but the rebate steps down over time. | |
| Merced Irrigation District PV Buydown Program. Program offers residential customers $2.80/W AC with a maximum of $8,400. | Merced Irrigation District PV Buydown Program. Program offers commercial and non-profit customers $2.80/W AC with a maximum of $70,000. | ||
| Modesto Irrigation District Solar PV Rebate. Program offers all customers a rebate of $1.00/W AC for systems sized 1-30kW. | Modesto Irrigation District Solar PV Rebate. Program offers all customers a performance-based incentive of $0.10/kWh for 10 years for systems sized 30kW to 1MW. | ||
| PG&E Solar PV Rebate. This program offers $0.20/W or a performance-based incentive of $0.03/kWh to system owners in all sectors. | PG&E Solar PV Rebate. This program offers $0.20/W or a performance-based incentive of $0.03/kWh to system owners in all sectors. | ||
| LADWP Solar Incentive Program. $1.62/W CEC-AC for customer-owned residential and $1.50/W CEC-AC for leased residential systems |
LADWP Solar Incentive Program. Closed until July 2013 for commercial, government, and non-profit systems. |
California Solar Highlights
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General Solar Resources
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Regional Partners
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