After five years of bureaucratic limbo, Cape Cod clean energy program finally comes to fruition
By Sarah Shemkus, Energy News Network
After five years of rejections, revisions, appeals, and resubmissions, a Cape Cod energy organization has received state approval for a first-of-its-kind pilot program providing a package of solar panels, heat pumps, and battery storage to low-income households.
The program called the Cape and Vineyard Electric Offering will provide all three technologies, free of charge, to 25 low-income homes in the region. Another 75 homes — a mix of low- and middle-income households — will get low- or no-cost whole-home heat pumps and solar panels, as well as advice on financing a battery purchase if desired. The program is expected to roll out to the public in April.
“It’s a relief and a great sense of satisfaction in being able to serve a customer group that has been underserved,” said Maggie Downey, administrator of the Cape Light Compact, the regional energy organization behind the plan. “You can’t just electrify those homes that are owned or lived in by people of means — you have to include a path forward for every demographic in the commonwealth.”
Supporters have cheered the long-awaited approval of the program, but say the protracted process to get to this point demonstrates the need for the state to be more assertive in its attempts to lower emissions.
“It should have been approved a long time ago,” said Caitlin Peale Sloan, vice president for Massachusetts at the Conservation Law Foundation. “It should have been saving their customers money for years at this point. It took years of work to try to get this thing which should have been a no-brainer.”
Massachusetts is widely considered a national leader in promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency. The state has longstanding incentives for the adoption of solar panels and has recently increased its rebates for home heat pumps. Many homeowners with battery storage can enroll in utility programs that will pay them for sending power to the grid during times of peak demand.
Studies show, however, that all of these technologies are far less likely to be adopted by low- and moderate-income residents, despite their potential to cut costs for those who use them. The upfront price is often too high and many homes might need expensive upgrades before equipment can even be installed.
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