Delmarva Power announced it is making easier for customers to have solar panels installed and connected to the grid.
The changes will allow customers to bypass the paper process and instead complete a less cumbersome online application. The other change allows an authorized contractor who is selling, leasing or installing the solar panels to quickly get customer information needed for installation.
Until now, Delmarva has taken a low-key stance regarding solar installations. ‘The cost of solar panels has dropped sharply and national companies have entered the market that “rent rooftops” with no upfront costs, but also seeing smaller monthly savings on electric bills.
“This quicker and easier access to solar power is another benefit of our company’s recent merger with Exelon,” said Gary Stockbridge, Delmarva Power region president. “We’re responding to customer feedback and helping support the growth of solar power in Delaware and Maryland.”
As part of the merger, Exelon agreed to a number of commitments to foster the development of solar power in Delaware and Maryland.
Opponents of the merger claimed the giant utility would discourage the growth of solar. Exelon also operates a power generation business that has the nation’s largest fleet of nuclear power plants.
Any customer who wants to generate power using solar panels needs a new smart meter so that the excess electricity generated by solar can be transferred back to the electric grid, allowing the customer to receive credits on their Delmarva Power bills. With the creation of the new online application portal for solar customers, the process is expected to become even easier. Contractors and self-install customers can access the portal through delmarva.com/gpc, a release stated.
Under current law, every solar contractor is required to know how much electricity a customer has used in the past before they can install solar panels. This ensures the panels can be correctly sized to match those customers’ needs.
In the past, gathering and providing the customer’s historical usage information to the contractor was a manual process, but the new online system has a secure, automated form that is quick and easy to use.
As of March 30, more than 9,000 customers in the Delmarva Power region use net meters on their homes. That compares to approximately 6,700 a year ago. Delaware and Maryland are among the fastest growing states for solar generation.
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