From the Article:
Washington, D.C. just finished installing its first solar shingle project through the District’s Solar for All program for low-income residents.
The new installation at Rock Creek Ford is one of nearly 200 community solar installations underway as part of Solar for All, a Department of Energy & Environment program aiming to provide solar energy installations for 100,000 D.C. residents over the next decade. Participants can expect their energy bills to be halved over 15 years, the program says.
The new Rock Creek Ford project is the first in the District to use solar shingles by SunStyle. These shingles not only generate electricity like a traditional solar panel, they also function as a durable roofing material. The Swiss company’s solar shingles have been installed on hundreds of projects in Europe, from residences to government buildings, as well as on Google’s new campus in Mountain View, California.
This new solar roof installation will provide enough energy for six low-income families in the District, developers said in a news release. Through community solar projects like these, income-eligible residents can “subscribe” to a portion of the power produced by these community renewable energy facilities to receive a partial credit on their electric bill.
“Solar for All is making a significant impact here in the District by creating opportunities for local contractors, creating jobs for District residents, and most importantly, creating lasting electricity bill savings for income-qualified DC families,” said Ted Trabue, managing director of DC Sustainable Energy Utility, which runs the Solar for All program. The program is also providing over $11.5 million in incentives to local solar developers to install large community solar systems like this one, as well as solar systems for single-family homes of low-income families.