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Solar & battery

Solar Energy Calculator

Energy a solar system generates and what it is worth over its life.

Your numbers

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Result

Value of the energy $51,605 Over the period
Annual production 9,461 kWh
Value in year one $1,514
Energy over the period 222,858 kWh
Electricity rate in the final year $0.34
The system generates 222,858 kWh over 25 years, worth $51,605 at an electricity price rising 3 a year.

The escalation rate does most of the work in any long solar projection and nobody knows it. Rates have risen faster than general inflation in some markets and fallen in others. Run it at a low figure as well as an optimistic one before treating the total as real.

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Questions

About this calculator

What escalation rate is realistic?

Historically around 2% to 4% in most of the US, but it varies hugely by utility and has been far higher in some recent years. A projection at 6% looks wonderful and is not a forecast.

Does this include maintenance?

No. Add inverter replacement at roughly year 12 to 15, and occasional cleaning, before comparing against the system cost.

The formula

each year: production x rate, with production degrading 0.5% and the rate escalating

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Estimating is the easy part

The jobs you never hear about cost more than the ones you mis-measure. BDEVY builds the marketing, systems and automation that bring them in.