The dirt on the OHRS Program

OK. Here’s the deal. The Province of Ontario has unveiled the Ontario Home Renvation Savings Program, which includes up to $10k for solar + batteries (among other important home energy efficiency upgrades). BUT NOTE: net metered solar energy systems are not eligible for this program.

Recap: Net metering is the simplest, most efficient, most cost effective way to deploy clean energy on your property. Using net metering, you can be net zero for electricity on an annual basis, minimizing your monthly bills and maximizing your protection from future electricity price volatility. Surplus energy generated in the sunny summer is banked with your utility and used up in the winter. This does rely on the electric utility to act like a giant seasonal battery, and that does mean added cost and complexity for the utility system, as a whole and over time, but it also means less pollution, waste, and emissions from fossil fuel and nuclear energy, which is the ultimate goal, right?

The OHRS program does not fund net metered systems.

The ORHS program will fund zero-export solar energy systems. Zero-export systems offer far less benefit to most homeowners compared to net meter systems. Benefit can be extended by introducing a battery into the mix to save extra solar energy during the day for use later.

Compared to net metering, zero-export systems are: more complex, more expensive, less cost effective, less efficient, and, when batteries are included, harder to deploy. In areas where grid capacity is limited, zero-export is the only way to deploy solar. But everywhere else: net metering is the clear winner.

So yes, you can get up to $10k from the OHRS program. But it won’t save you anything compared to a simple net metered solar energy system. The additional cost of making a project grant-compliant (including batteries) will be *more than* the value of the grant, and the system will give you less benefit.

Please use the grant program for energy efficiency upgrades! Consider a heat pump, insulation upgrades, window replacements, or any of the other energy saving projects possible. For solar, stick with a simple net metered solar energy system.