In a move to stimulate the province’s solar industry and meet its own energy-efficiency targets, Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) launched a pilot program in 2012 offering municipal financing for homeowners to install solar hot water systems. Residents who participated in the pilot had the chance, independent of the pilot program, to replace aging electric hot water storage tanks or convert from oil to electric water heating, while installing the solar hot water systems.
As a first step, HRM renegotiated its municipal charter with the province to enable it to offer direct financing incentives to qualifying homeowners for these types of systems on private property. The necessary bylaw and first-ever solar building permit in Nova Scotia soon followed.
Check out this presentation on the Solar City Halifax program. Learn about five (5) key highlights on how Halifax built their compelling business case and how you can recreate the business case for your municipal solar project.