Solar, It's Payback Time!
Based out of Courtenay, Drewry Electrical has been advising the Comox Valley area on solar PV for many years. One of the most common questions new clients have is: what’s the payback period on solar PV? The answer—as often is the case with open ended questions—is it depends. For grid-connected systems, the key to paying for your solar PV system in the shortest amount of time requires understanding BC Hydro’s residential electricity rate structure, and sizing your system to take advantage of it based upon your consumption.To encourage energy conservation, BC Hydro bills electricity consumers using a two-step rate structure. Consumers are billed at Step 1 rates for their first 22.2 kWh per day averaged over their billing period. In a typical two month billing period this amounts to the first 1,350 kWh being billed at the Step 1 rate of 9.75 cents/kWh (including Rate Rider and GST). Any additional consumption above this threshold is then billed to the consumer at the Step 2 rate of 14.62 cents/kWh.


Thinking about going solar? Contact Drewry Electrical to learn more about your options. By analyzing your historical energy consumption we can advise you on the best system to suit your needs, ensuring that you get the fastest payback time and lowest upfront cost.
