Fortis investing in solar array, but users will see bills increase

Some environmentally conscious Kelowna-area homeowners could soon draw a small portion of their electricity from a large solar array.

FortisBC plans to put up 720 solar panels at a high-profile location along Highway 97 across from the Kelowna airport at a cost of almost $1 million.

“Interest in solar is on the rise and we’re working to provide an easy, affordable option for our customers who want to use solar energy to meet a portion of their energy needs,” the utility says in a release.

The so-called “virtual solar” scheme is expected to be popular among people who are interested in non-traditional sources of energy, but who don’t want to go to the trouble and expense of putting up their own rooftop solar array.

The program, however, will not result in a reduction in a participant’s utility bill, and their yearly charge for electricity will actually increase.

Despite the extra cost, FortisBC expects the program will appeal to those who want to be “part of a green community project,” as stated in the utility’s application for the project to the B.C. Utilities Commission.

From the application documents, this is how the virtual solar program would work:

— For an annual payment of $81, a FortisBC customer could “rent” one of the 720 panels and be entitled to a credit equal to the value of the power produced by that panel.

— A customer might choose to rent three panels, at a cost of $240. Those three panels, the utility says, would generate about 100 kWh of power each month.

— The approximate monthly value of that amount of electricity is $10. So the customer’s account would be credited by $10 a month throughout the year.

— After one year, the customer’s rental fee

for the solar panels would total $240, but they will have had credits of $120, so it will have cost them $120 to participate in the program.

FortisBC acknowledges participating in the program will cost its customers money, at least in the short-term.

“While the initial upfront cost will be higher than the credits (at) current electricity rates, the (solar panel rental) fee is fixed for as long as the customer is in the program, so over the long-term, the program may result in savings if electric rates rise sufficiently,” the utility says on its website.

A decision by the BCUC on whether to approve

the solar array is expected later this year. Construction would start immediately with completion within six months.

If not enough people sign up to participate in the virtual solar program, the cost of building the array will be passed on to all FortisBC customers in the form of a “modest” rate increase, the utility says.

The solar array’s expected energy output, of about 290,000 kWh annually, is “not a significant source of energy” compared to the utility’s overall generating capacity, most of which comes from large hydro-electric plants, states part of FortisBC’s application to the BCUC.