By subscribing, you are helping put more solar – a 100% renewable power source – on the grid. Every customer who subscribes to community solar is contributing to the increase of solar power onto the grid. As the state’s energy grid fills up with more solar, the demand for fossil fuels will decrease.
A. The contract is for 20 years to ensure your long term savings.
A. Yes. As long as you have a ComEd electric bill, you can subscribe to a Community Solar farm.
A. No. There are no upfront costs.
A. Clearway will review your electric bill, which shows your electricity demand across the past twelve months. From that, Clearway allocates the number of panels to you necessary to provide 100% of your electricity demand on an annual basis. The amount of electricity generated by those panels each month determine your monthly credit that ComEd subtracts from your bill. If there is more electricity produced than you used, the excess is credited to your account and it rolls over to the next month. This process will continue until the credits are used up in a later bill.
A. Yes. If you do not produce all of your energy needs with your solar panels, you may be able to subscribe for the remaining portion. A Clearway Energy Consultant will be able to help assess your home’s viability for the program.
A. Nothing will need to be installed at your home. Clearway will maintain the solar panels at the farm as necessary, including cleaning.
A. No, your Community Solar subscription will not send the energy generated by the Community Solar farm directly to your home. The energy generated by the Community Solar farm is sent directly to the local power grid, replacing polluted energy from fossil fuels, while the environmental attributes are sold to a state program to encourage renewable energy development. Having a new Community Solar farm on the grid and participating in the program helps Illinois reach its clean energy goals and your subscription supports that effort for more renewable power in Illinois.
A. Yes, you can still enroll with Clearway Community Solar even if you receive energy supply with an ARES—however, the solar bill credits from Clearway may be reduced and savings is not guaranteed. In order to receive the guaranteed discount with Clearway’s program and benefit from the energy savings assurance, you will need to receive energy supply through your local utility on the default supply rate. If you currently receive energy supply through an ARES, you will want to make sure you are switched back to the utility’s default supply service rate before the Clearway Community Solar farm is placed in service. We recommend that customers do not join any real-time pricing programs with their utility during their Clearway subscription as the solar bill credits will be reduced.
A. No. Solar credits will only start showing up on your electricity bill once the solar farm is energized. You will not be billed during development and construction phases.
A. Clearway’s program is separate from your utility, and your energy supply is still through your local utility. Therefore, you will continue to receive your utility bill as usual, but now, your utility bill will show the solar bill credits resulting from your Clearway subscription, which reduces your utility charges. Clearway will send a separate bill to you for the solar bill credits at your contracted rate.
A. You will be able to pay your Clearway bill either online, by phone, or by check. Clearway also offers paperless billing and AutoPay.
A. If you move within Clearway’s service territory, your Community Solar subscription can move with you without any charges. You must provide written notice of your new address at least 60 days prior to your move.
If you move outside the utility service area, you may transfer your solar farm allocation by finding an eligible replacement customer. If not, you must provide proof of your new meter address to be waived from the cancellation fee.
Clearway Community Solar is an Approved Vendor of the Illinois Shines program, also known as the Adjustable Block Program or “ABP.” Illinois Shines is a state-administered program for new solar development and solar PV systems.