SOLAR ENERGY SAVINGS
How Does New Earth Calculate Your Solar Panel Savings?
How Does That Work?
We are here to help explain it. We understand you want to know what you can expect to save on your current electricity costs by going solar with New Earth Solar. That's why our solar quotes contain customized estimates of projected solar savings.
We don't stop there. We believe in transparency and want you to make an informed, confident decision about going solar in Michigan and the other areas we serve. You'll be thrilled about how your New Earth Energy System positively impacts your life that you'd recommend that your family and friends join you in the solar revolution with New Earth Solar.
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Solar Panel Savings, Put Simply
Data shows the price of solar energy was typically lower than the cost of electricity customers bought from their utilities. The sooner you lock into a predictable price for solar energy, the sooner you may see avoided costs from the trend of rising electricity rates.*
That said, your savings from going solar can vary from those estimated in your customized quote based on factors we can't control. These factors include future utility rates (which are up to your utility) and your home's future electricity usage (which is up to you). Ready to learn more?.
Remember, while we want to be up-front about the factors that go into savings, we always provide customers with a predictable price for solar energy throughout the course of their solar contract. So all of our customers experience more control over their
energy costs.
We invite you to join thousands of Americans in the solar revolution by
harnessing the power of the sun and gaining enhanced control over your
energy future today!
Analyzing Your Utility Bills
The first step in calculating savings for our customized solar quotes is to analyze your current utility bills. Our advanced software looks at your utility bills from the prior 12 months, allows for seasonal variation, and incorporates both fixed and variable charges (to the extent applicable in your utility).
In analyzing your bills, we take into account several important factors including fixed charges, which cover the utility's cost of providing electricity service and would be incurred with or without solar. These can be in the form of a monthly charge, or a minimum dollar amount on your bill. And variable charges, which reflect the price of electricity usage that can be directly offset with solar.
Additionally, our bill analysis accounts for different rate structures:
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If your utility has tiered rates based on usage, we estimate your tiered rate based on the historical usage data provided by you.
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If your utility has time-of-use rates based on when energy is used during the day, we estimate the time-of-use rate of a typical usage profile.
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If your utility has non-standard rate plans, for example, a different
plan for Electric Vehicle users, we might be able to accommodate
this as well - ask your solar consultant.
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Finally, your state or local government might offer credits that reduce
your utility bill as an incentive for going solar. If it does, we account
for these.
It's important to know that while we use current utility data, actual
future utility rates, charges, and fee structures are subject to change
by your utility and other entities which New Earth Solar does not
control.
Making 1-Year Solar Energy
Savings Projections
Using these bill estimates, your home's historic electricity usage, and your New Earth Energy System's projected solar production, we first calculate Year One Solar Energy Savings Projections. Here's how that looks in our quotes:
Average Net Monthly Savings is an estimate of what you would save on electricity costs, on average, each month in the first year you go solar. To calculate it, we start with your yearly projected electricity costs without solar (what we call your Old Utility Bill) and subtract your yearly projected electricity costs with solar (Solar Payments and New Utility Bill). We then divide that number by 12 to give you a sense of what your average monthly solar energy savings in the first year after going solar would be, although in many instances your savings will vary each month due to seasonality and usage.
We then break this down for you. Without Solar shows an estimate of your average monthly electricity costs for the first year if you continued to purchase 100% of your electricity from your utility.
With Solar shows an estimate of your average monthly electricity costs for the first year with your new energy mix. You would be generating your own electricity with predictable solar payments and purchasing less electricity from your utility, resulting in a lower average monthly utility electricity bill.
30-Year Solar Power
Savings Projections
To help you think about solar in the long run, we also calculate customized 30-year savings estimates (including annual and cumulative net savings for each year). To this, we extrapolate from your Year One Solar Energy Savings Projections.
Specifically, we adjust your "Old Utility Bill" and "New Utility Bill" for each year based on projected Annual Utility Rate Increases to arrive at your "Utility Savings." We then subtract your Solar Payments and add in any Solar Incentives that you may be eligible to receive based on the area you live in and what type of solar agreement you have chosen.
Annual utility rate increases are future projections derived from publicly available data. For most utilities, New Earth
Solar bases its projections on a state-by-state analysis of the last ten years of available data regarding utility rates
provided by the United States Energy Information Administration ("EIA").
More importantly, utility rate increases are projections and are not guaranteed by New Earth Solar. This is
because actual future utility rates, charges, and fee structures are subject to change by your utility and other entities
which New Earth Solar does not control. Of course, that highlights one of the biggest benefits of going solar with
New Earth Solar - unlike with your utility, you'll be paying a predictable price for solar energy from your
New Earth Energy System.
Most importantly, Solar Payments is our estimate of what you will pay for solar energy in a given year.**
Here's how that works:
When you choose a cash purchase of the New Earth Energy System, your only solar payment is the Upfront System Cost, which is paid in year 1.
When you choose to finance your purchase of a New Earth Energy System with a loan your monthly payments could be lower than your current electric bill.
Solar Incentives refers to estimated financial incentives that may be available to
you if you purchase your New Earth Energy System. These include the federal residential tax credits, and solar
renewable energy credits through your energy company. These
incentives may need to be applied for by you, are subject to change by entities outside of
our control, and are not guaranteed by New Earth Solar.
Do Seasons Impact Savings?
Even in below-freezing weather, solar panels turn sunlight into electricity. That’s because solar panels absorb energy from our sun’s abundant light, not the sun’s heat. In fact, cold climates are actually optimal for solar panel efficiency.
So long as sunlight is hitting a solar panel, it will generate electricity. Any diminished output during the winter months will primarily be due to heavy snow and shorter daylight hours.
New Earth Solar
Helps You Take Control
Remember that even though we account for seasonality and for future changes in production, your solar energy savings will vary based on factors we can't control, including actual future utility rates, charges, fee structures, and your future electricity usage.
But, unlike your utility, we do help you gain more control over your future energy costs and solar savings by providing you with a predictable price for solar energy.
Control Your Future Energy Costs
With a financed New Earth Energy System, you get a fixed monthly payment based on your historical electric usage and financing options available.
With a purchased system, you also continue to own the system, and the energy it produces, when those 25 years are over.
* More detail about the average residential electricity price per kWh nationwide, and for most utilities in New Earth Solar service areas, over the last 10 years can be found at http://www.eia.gov/electricity/data.cfm#sales (2015). Future utility rate increases and volatility are not guaranteed by New Earth Solar. Actual future utility rates, and fee structures are subject to change by your utility and other entities that New Earth Solar does not control.
** Your monthly payments, and therefore your annual solar payments, may be higher if you choose to pay by check or by phone. Please review your solar agreement for more information.
*** New Earth Solar is not a lender. All loan terms are estimates. Please refer to your Truth in Lending Disclosure and loan documents for final payment terms.
