Business customers: Give solar to a local nonprofit of your choice
Your business can make a long-lasting impact for a nonprofit of your choice with a gift subscription to our Superior Solar community solar garden. The local nonprofit you partner with will receive an energy credit for part or all of each month's electric bill for 25 years, depending on the number of block subscriptions the nonprofit purchases with your gift.
How much does a gift cost?
The one-time reservation fee is $122.04/per kW block, in addition to $2,318.78 per block. That means your gift of $2,440.82 is a one-time, upfront initial cost, but the nonprofit organization will avoid future energy cost increases by locking in the solar garden subscription rates for the 25-year life of the program.
Do I have to know anything about the nonprofit’s energy bill or how much energy the nonprofit we choose uses every month?
No, as long as the nonprofit is an electric customer of Superior Water, Light & Power, we can create a solar subscription to meet their needs and help them save on their electric bill.
For details
Please contact Joscelyn Skandel at jskandel@swlp.com or 715-395-6234 or Harper Brickson at hbrickson@swlp.com or 715-395-6215.
Residential customers: Your loved one can unwrap the sun
Here's a gift they'll remember for years to come: a subscription to our Superior Solar community solar garden. Instead of a tech gadget that will be obsolete in months or a sweater that will wear out in a year, consider giving renewable solar energy—a gift that will make a difference on their electric bill for the 25-year life of the solar garden program.
Can I really just “give” someone solar panels?
Yes, you can purchase subscriptions to individual solar panels and give the energy output to friends or family members. They’ll benefit from receiving the energy credit on their bill each month. Our Solar Team is equipped to help you sign up a friend or family member for solar panels in a simple, straight-forward process.
How much does a Superior Solar gift cost?
The one-time reservation fee is $122.04/per kW block, in addition to $2,318.78 per block. That means your gift of $2,440.82 is a one-time, upfront initial cost, but your loved one will avoid future energy cost increases by locking in the solar garden subscription rates for the 25-year life of the program.
Do I have to know anything about their energy bill or how much energy my friend or family member uses every month?
No, as long as they are electric customers of Superior Water, Light & Power, we know we can create a solar subscription to meet their needs and help them save on their electric bill.
To give a Superior Solar gift to a family member or a friend
Please contact our solar team at 715-395-6220 or solarprogram@swlp.com as soon as possible, so we can make sure your family member is able to unwrap the sun for a brighter future in time for the holidays!
A SUPERIOR WATER, LIGHT & POWER COMMUNITY SOLAR GARDEN
Our community solar garden is a simple, flexible and convenient way for customers to save money over the long term and support clean energy. It's a great choice if you want to go solar but don't want to install or maintain a system at your home or business. Program costs are fixed over the 25-year life of the program, which gives you protection against changes in energy costs.
We're planning to build a 470-kilowatt solar garden at 2828 Hammond Ave., near Heritage Park, in Superior and have it generating power in 2022. When you sign up to be a part of this clean-energy project you can:
- Choose how much solar energy you want—enough to cover a portion or all of your monthly energy use.
- Lock in rates for your solar energy for 25 years.
- Choose one of three ways to pay. You decide what's best for you
Call 715-395-6220 or email solarprogram@swlp.com to contact a SWL&P representative, or complete this online form to receive project updates.
Community solar garden FAQs
What is a community solar garden?
A community solar garden is a shared solar array where subscribers receive a credit for the amount of solar energy produced by their share of the array. Superior Water, Light & Power's solar garden is divided into 1-kilowatt blocks, allowing customers to choose the portion of their energy they want to come from solar energy. Subscribing to a solar garden is a simple way for customers to participate in solar without the need to install a system on their own home or business.
Does the energy from the solar garden actually power my home or business?
Electricity produced by the community solar garden will feed into the power grid and flow directly to the nearest load. So the electricity actually generated by the solar arrays probably won't go directly to your home or business, but you will receive credit for this energy on your monthly bill. There is no need to change or add equipment at your home or business in order to participate. In addition, all the construction, maintenance and operations are performed by the solar developer and SWL&P. There will be no requirement to pay for ongoing costs of the system.
Who can participate?
Any SWL&P residential or commercial customer in good account standing may participate in the solar garden program.
How much does it cost to participate?
Based on our proposed project estimate, customers can choose from three options: an upfront one-time payment, a fixed monthly subscription fee or a fixed charge per kilowatt-hour. All customers will pay a one-time reservation fee of $122.04/per kW block.
All three options are designed to have an equal value based on the expected 25-year life of the program, although each payment option has a different set of considerations to take into account. In all options, customers have the flexibility to leave the program at any time without penalty.
- Upfront payment: $2,318.78 per block. An upfront payment for the solar garden subscription will decrease future monthly bills for the customer. However, there is an opportunity cost for that initial outlay and many customers cannot afford to prepay for the entire subscription amount. The subscription payment is pre-set, regardless of how much solar energy is ultimately produced.
- Monthly subscription fee: $16.25 a month per block. The monthly payment option includes a pre-set fixed charge on each monthly bill regardless of the amount of solar energy produced and credited to the bill. Therefore, there is greater value during months when more solar energy is produced, than during low energy production months, when less energy is credited to the bill.
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Fixed charge per kilowatt-hour:
14.30 cents per kilowatt-hour produced by your block. In the fixed charge per kilowatt-hour option, the customer pays for all of the solar energy produced by their subscription in any given month. This means that the monthly subscription payment will fluctuate, with higher subscription payments during higher production months (such as in the summer), and lower payments during lower production months (such as in the winter).
How will a community solar garden subscription affect my bill?
Solar garden participants will receive a credit on their monthly bill for the energy produced by their subscription of the solar garden. The credit will be applied to both the energy charges and the majority of the fee adjustments on your bill. In addition, customers who choose a monthly subscription fee or fixed charge per kilowatt-hour will be billed for their subscription each month.
How will I benefit from the community solar garden program?
Subscribers will receive credit on their monthly bill for the energy produced by their share of the solar arrays. While participating customers may initially pay more than their current SWL&P bill, the solar garden rates will be fixed for 25 years. This means that participating customers can “hedge” against possible future increases in base energy costs by locking in the solar garden subscription rates for 25 years.
Participating customers may also benefit from achieving their green energy goals and supporting renewable energy in the region by partnering with SWL&P to bring about the first solar garden in Superior, Wisconsin. Customers who require solar renewable energy credits, commonly referred to as SRECs, for their energy goals should note that SWL&P will retire SRECs in the subscriber's name associated with the community solar garden on an annual basis. SRECs represent the renewable energy attributes associated with a solar array.
How do I size my subscription?
When determining the size of your subscription, consider your energy goals, budget, and historical energy usage trends. Each solar garden subscription represents 1 kilowatt (kW) of capacity. Each 1 kW block is estimated to produce an average of 1,500 to 1,800 kilowatt-hours per year. We encourage you to size your subscription to meet your renewable energy goals, but be aware that your total subscription will be capped at 100 percent of your average usage in the previous 12 months.
What happens if I use less energy in a month than my solar garden subscription produces?
Solar gardens typically produce more energy in summer than winter so there might be times when a subscriber has more solar energy than can be used in a given month. In these cases, the extra solar energy credits will be “banked” or carried over into future months. Banked energy credits can be used when less solar energy is produced or when more energy is used by the customer.
What if I move or want to leave the program?
Subscribers who move to another location within SWL&P's service territory may keep their solar garden subscription. Customers who move outside our service territory may gift their subscription to an eligible customer at any time with no penalty.
Customers may leave the program at any time without penalty. Because customers who choose the upfront payment option have made a significant investment, they have the option to sell their subscription to SWL&P based on a predetermined depreciation schedule.
Are there rebates or tax credits available to help lower the cost of participating in the program?
No. SWL&P used federal tax credits, a competitive bidding process, and economies of scale to achieve the lowest possible price for participants.
Do I own the panel?
As a subscriber to the solar garden you do not own any of the equipment at the solar facilities. By participating in the solar garden, you are supporting the advancement of solar energy in Superior, Wisconsin, and receiving the benefits of the solar arrays in the form of an energy credit applied to your monthly bill for 25 years.
How much electricity will a solar garden subscription produce?
The community solar garden is divided into 470 blocks. Each block is equal to 1 kilowatt of capacity. Each 1 kilowatt block may produce between 1,500 to 1,800 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per year.
Solar arrays will produce different amounts of energy depending on weather conditions, length of the day, and other factors. Therefore, your subscription will produce less energy in the winter than in the summer. Solar arrays also are expected to degrade over time and will produce less energy as the system ages.