Why now is the best time to go solar in North Carolina

They say there’s no time like the present—that’s especially true if you live in North Carolina and are thinking of installing solar panels.

North Carolina has some of the best solar incentives in the nation thanks to its major utility, Duke Energy. Its biggest incentive, The PowerPair program, awards you up to $9,000 in cash for installing a solar plus battery system. Battery owners can couple it with the Power Manager program (called the EnergyWise Home program in Duke Energy Progress territory) for an additional annual incentive of up to $1,100. But this opportunity won’t be around forever, and PowerPair is creeping closer to capacity. Not only that; some changes to North Carolina’s Electric Code coming in 2025 may lessen the deal.

We’ll explain these incentives, why you should take advantage of them sooner rather than later, and how to sign up.

The PowerPair program is a solar plus storage cash incentive available to Duke Energy customers in North Carolina. If you buy a solar panel system with a battery, you can earn a one-time payment of up to $9,000, including up to $3,600 for the solar panels and up to $5,400 for the battery.

The words “up to” before the dollar sign may make you skeptical, but Bryce Bruncati, Director of Residential Sales at 8MSolar (an Elite installer on the EnergySage Marketplace) in Raleigh, North Carolina, tells us that most homeowners see a big payback.

“Very rarely is it under $8,000, so you’re still getting a pretty significant incentive,” Bruncati said.

The amount you earn is based on the type of equipment you install and its capacity. If your solar panel system’s inverter is rated 10 kilowatts (kW) and below, you’ll earn $0.36 per watt (W) If your battery is 13.5 kWh in size and below, you'll earn $400/kWh.

This is one of the best solar incentives available in the country, not only for the amount but also because you’ll be getting a cash check. Most other solar incentives come as a credit toward your annual tax bill or monthly electric bill, so getting a big check in the mail after installation is an attractive offer.

The PowerPair incentive is on a first-come-first-serve basis until capacity runs out, so there’s no telling exactly when it will end. The program kicked off in January 2024 and, as of October 2024, has roughly 23,600 kW left for Duke Energy Carolina customers and 19,325 kW left for Duke Energy Progress customers—about 79% and 64% of each capacity remaining, respectively.

Accurate as of October 3, 2024. For the most up-to-date information, visit Duke Energy's website.

Once you reserve your spot on the PowerPair program list (typically your solar installer does this for you), you have 270 days to install the system to receive the incentive, according to Bruncati. He said you can expect the check to come in the mail around 45 to 60 days after your system activation.

It’s worth noting this isn’t just for new customers. Existing homes with solar batteries can participate in the PowerPair program.

If PowerPair wasn’t enticing enough, Duke Energy Carolinas rolled out its Power Manager battery incentive in June, which allows you to earn up to $92 per month (about $1,100 per year) in energy credits. Duke Energy Progress offers the same program, but it's called EnergyWise Home. Through this virtual power plant (VPP) program, you’ll be allowing Duke Energy to access the power stored in your solar battery to provide stored electricity back to the grid.

Duke Energy will be able to access your battery 30 times a year at minimum, and 36 times at maximum. You’ll be told before it happens each time and will have the option to opt-out at least four times per year while still maintaining eligibility for the bill credits.

You’ll want to get in on the PowerPair program before capacity runs out, but there’s another reason why you should sign up to install your solar plus battery system before the end of the year—the new North Carolina State Electrical Code, effective January 2025.

Battery install costs are about to spike

We won’t get into the nitty gritty details of North Carolina’s new electrical code (you can click the link above if you want to read more), but Bruncati said the change will require all battery installers to install subpanels to limit the loads systems, which will likely add $1,500 to $1,800 to your total cost.

“Right now for the vast majority of [battery] installs that we do, we're doing whole home backup. So we're backing up the whole home with the battery, customers just have to be careful to not run the AC too much if they see the battery getting low. But starting in 2025, we're going to have to do subpanels, so that's going to add cost there,” said Bruncati.

Whole-home backup will become trickier—and pricier

Beyond increasing the installation cost, Bruncati tells us the new code will also make it more difficult to back up your entire home with your solar battery. You'll be limited to the loads on your subpanel unless you install multiple batteries to meet your total possible power output (which can get quite pricey).

For example, we've watched the Tesla Powerwall 3 skyrocket in popularity this year, in large part due to its high power output that makes backing up your whole home possible with one battery. (Albeit, for short durations unless the sun is shining.) Under the new electrical code, in most cases, installers will no longer be able to use one Tesla Powerwall 3 for whole-home backup systems.

Bruncati also assured us that the new code doesn’t mean that the current code has any fire or safety hazards. If you want the full backup benefit from your solar battery, he suggests acting fast.

“If it’s December 10 and I submit a [solar installation] permit and get it approved, I don’t need the subpanels, I can do the whole home backup…but for everyone starting in December that we’re quoting, we’re probably going to have to start building [the subpanels] in.”

Brunacti said his team spoke with the inspector's office in North Carolina and was told that anyone with an approved solar permit in 2024 can adhere to this year's electrical code.

Your window of time to get a battery at a great price is limited—but the great news is that you don’t have to go through the hoops of signing up for Duke Energy’s PowerPair or Power Manager/EnergyWise Home programs. If you work with the right installer, they’ll sign up for you and make sure you’re receiving the largest incentive available for your solar plus battery storage system. 

To quickly connect with vetted, experienced solar installers in North Carolina, check out the EnergySage Marketplace. If installers include the PowerPair program in your quotes, the incentive amount will show up in the "State/Local tax credits" section. (We know, it's not technically a tax credit, but bear with us). It'll also be reflected in the net cost of your system. If you don't see the incentive in a quote and want to, let the installer know. They can easily add it in.