Expanding the Solar Colchester program in Nova Scotia

Solar Colchester launched in 2019 as the first solar PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) financing program to serve rural communities in Nova Scotia. During its first year, Solar Colchester supported 18 completed projects, generated a long waitlist of interested homeowners, and bolstered solar literacy and demand in the community. Colchester is now seeking GMF funding to scale up the existing solar program, include an energy efficiency retrofit stream, and increase staff capacity to launch and administer the program.

The expanded Solar Colchester program will help homeowners invest in solar and energy efficiency upgrades without having to pay the upfront costs. The program will target single-detached homes and will support eligible upgrades such as rooftop and ground-mounted solar photovoltaic systems; heat pumps; insulation; triple-paned windows and doors; air sealing; high-efficiency water heaters; LED lighting; and programmable thermostats. The expanded program will integrate with Nova Scotia Power’s Enhanced Net Metering Program and will complement Efficiency Nova Scotia’s incentives for home solar installations, energy efficiency upgrades and EnerGuide home energy assessments. To eliminate barriers to participation, the municipality will also reimburse participants for any outstanding home energy assessment costs.

To recapitalize the program, the municipality will continue to invest municipal reserve funds and will seek a GMF loan and grant. The GMF loan will help to support 100 home energy projects per year, increase the maximum loan amount, extend the loan repayment period and eliminate the $1,000 deposit that has been a barrier to some participants. The GMF grant will be used, in part, to hire a full-time energy consultant; provide training for staff and contractors to increase local capacity to administer and support the program; and conduct a program design study to support the new energy efficiency stream. By offering financing for both solar and home energy retrofits, the expanded program is anticipated to achieve 3.3% market penetration over the next four years for single-detached dwellings in Colchester.

The Solar Colchester program is supported by the municipality’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory and Forecast (2017), which identifies the residential sector as the highest-emitting community source of greenhouse gas emissions; the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan (2019), which prioritizes reducing home energy use and costs through energy efficiency and renewable energy measures; the amended Municipal Government Act, which authorizes Nova Scotia municipalities to make bylaws to support PACE financing programs; and the Solar Colchester PACE Bylaw (2019) and accompanying Solar Colchester PACE Policy (2019).

Financing terms extended to homeowners:

• Loan amount: The maximum loan amount is $25,000 per property.
• Loan terms and repayment: The loan term for all projects is 15 years, with no penalty for early repayment. Colchester may charge an added administration fee to participants who do not require financing or who pay off their loans in the first year.
• Interest rates: Prime rate + 0.75% will be the fixed rate for the duration of the loan term. Prime is determined at the time of agreement signing.
• Underwriting criteria: To secure repayment in case of default, the loan cannot exceed 25% of the property value. Applicants must also be current on their property tax payments and have no record of defaults, overdue payments or amounts owing.
• Additional fees or charges to participants: An administration fee of $200 will be charged when the participant agreement is signed.
• Consumer protection measures: Colchester will develop an approved contractors list; direct homeowners to use energy advisors approved by Efficiency Nova Scotia; require contractors and homeowners to sign a Certificate of Completion attesting that projects were satisfactorily completed; hire an in-house energy consultant to advise participants; conduct site visits to at least one project completed by each contractor; and use the pre- and post-retrofit assessments to compare the anticipated and actual energy savings of projects.
• Other: Following the program design study, Colchester may decide to contract the administration of the energy-efficiency stream to a third party, such as Clean Foundation or PACE Atlantic.

Capital project financing from GMF will flow through the Nova Scotia Municipal Finance Corporation to the municipality. At the same time, third-party rebate funds will flow from Efficiency Nova Scotia directly to contractors upon project completion. The outstanding project costs will be financed by GMF and municipal reserve funds. The municipality will pay contractors upon receipt of an invoice and a signed Certificate of Completion. The municipality will then place an efficiency improvement charge against the property. Participants will be invoiced for the charge annually but can pay it off monthly as with their property taxes. Homeowners will also pay for home energy assessments upfront and be reimbursed by the municipality upon submission of the completed reports.

Environmental benefits:

The program is anticipated to reduce energy usage by 12,512 GJ per year and greenhouse gas emissions by 1,423 tCO2e per year.

Social and economic benefits:

Solar Colchester will reduce Colchester’s dependency on fossil fuels and help it transition to a clean energy economy. The expanded program will significantly increase the demand for contractors in the sector. This demand, and municipally subsidized training, will create jobs and develop the knowledge of local contractors. The program will also reduce home energy costs. This money, which would otherwise leave the community, will remain in Colchester and further support the local economy. The program will also improve air quality (60% of electricity in Nova Scotia is generated by coal-fired plants), improve housing affordability, increase home comfort, combat energy poverty, and increase energy literacy through public information sessions about solar energy, energy efficiency and PACE financing.

Innovative aspect(s):

The scope of the expanded Solar Colchester program is considered innovative for a municipality of this size.

Replicability:

Since launching Solar Colchester, the municipality has presented the program at the CanSIA Solar Summit in Halifax (2019), an ICLEI/FCM webinar (2020), and the Municipality of East Hants’ Council (2020). Colchester has also contributed to the CanSIA Go Solar Guide and the Nova Scotia PACE website. Municipal staff attend regular Municipal Energy Learning Group Meetings where Nova Scotia municipalities and organizations—including the Clean Foundation and Efficiency Nova Scotia—discuss their climate and energy initiatives. Colchester will also update the Solar Colchester website to feature resources to help other municipalities adopt similar programs. Materials will include an information sheet on the program’s development and the Colchester PACE policy and bylaw.