When Peter Leiss decided to get solar panels and a battery installed, he could have put in the paperwork to qualify for a $10,000 rebate from the provincial government.
uncertain
he → decide → government
Instead, he said no.
asserted
he → say → ?
That’s because Leiss says the rebate comes with a catch that makes it impossible to accept.
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it → ’ → catch
“If we had taken the rebate, all the excess power that’s produced goes into the grid and you don’t get any credit for it,” he said.
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he → take → it
“It doesn’t make any sense.”
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It → make → sense
Despite shelling out tens of thousands of dollars to generate clean electricity, most people installing solar panels and batteries are turning down the government subsidy, the Star has learned.
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Star → shell → subsidy
“For probably 95 percent of our clients, it’s actually not a good option,” said Beau Badore, owner of solar panel installer Heliotechnik.
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Badore → ’ → Heliotechnik
Homeowners, he says, will pay off their system more quickly by turning down the rebate and getting paid for their excess power.
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he → say → power
Restricting the rebate in such a way not only discourages folks from installing solar, experts say, it also hampers society from reaping the benefits: cheaper electricity and lower bills.
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it → restrict → benefits
Ontario is the only province that makes people choose.
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people → make → ?
Other provinces not only allow homeowners to receive a government rebate and sell their solar generation into the grid, many require it in order to capture the full value of the technology.
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many → allow → technology
Solar power has been hailed as the cheapest form of energy in history, is being installed on rooftops around the world and can push power into the grid to alleviate bottlenecks, avoiding costly grid upgrades and keeping power bills down for everyone.
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power → hail → everyone
In the U.K. and Australia, solar is flooding grids with so much energy, it has led to utilities offering free electricity.
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utilities → flood → electricity
But experts say these benefits only work if those with solar panels are incentivized to share their power.
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those → say → power
“This is a huge missed opportunity,” said Badore.
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Badore → miss → ?
Internal Ministry of Energy documents, obtained via access-to-information legislation, show that the province was warned that taking away the ability of solar panel owners to sell their power would “significantly limit the uptake of residential solar PV systems.”
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taking → obtain → systems
An internal analysis found that payback periods for solar installations would almost double without “net metering,” which pays households for exported energy with credits that offset their power bills.
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that → find → bills
The payback period for a non-exporting solar system would be between 30 and 40 years or “higher than its economic useful life of 25 years,” the government analysis found.
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analysis → find → years
Net metering reduces that payback time to 23-29 years, while allowing system owners to both take the rebate and export energy reduces the payback time to 17-22 years.
asserted
owners → reduce → years
Adding a battery makes the rule even worse for homeowners, pushing up the payback period to 73 to 100+ years with the rebate alone.
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rule → add → rebate
If homeowners could claim both incentives, that would come down to 26 years, the analysis found.
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analysis → claim → years
These lengthy payback timelines mean installers might suggest their customers not sign up for the rebate “since (net metering) offers a better business case,” the analysis found.
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analysis → mean → case
The ministry still ended up recommending the either/or approach, because it considered allowing both to be “double-dipping of government incentives,” the documents state.
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documents → end → incentives
“Our government launched the largest energy efficiency framework in Canadian history, offering rebates of up to $10,000 for households through the Home Renovation Savings Program to lower costs while supporting the adoption of (small scale generation like rooftop solar),” said Noah Mawji, spokesperson for Ontario Energy Minister Stephen Lecce, in an emailed statement.
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Mawji → launch → statement
The province has taken steps to reduce barriers and support smarter planning for these small power producers, “as part of an all-of-the-above approach to meet rising energy demand while keeping electricity affordable,” he wrote.
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he → take → electricity
Combining the rebate and net metering was allowed in Ontario until 2024, when the Home Efficiency Rebate+ program abruptly stopped taking new applications.
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program → combine → applications
Since January 2025, when the new Home Renovation Savings Program was launched, only 339 people have received a solar panel and/or battery rebate, said the Independent Electricity System Operator, which helps administer the program.
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which → launch → program
There is no tally of the total number of solar projects installed province-wide during that time, but installers estimate only one in 10 customers opt for the rebate.
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customers → be → rebate
The problem with the program
Forcing people to choose transforms a policy that ostensibly encourages rooftop solar into one that limits its adoption and stifles its benefits, experts say.
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experts → force → benefits
“If you are not net metered, your system is only useful for you,” said Phil McKay, senior director of member programs at the Canadian Renewable Energy Association.
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McKay → say → Association
“So you get a smaller system and there’s less power for your neighbours.”
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you → get → neighbours
Typically, rooftop solar produces electricity that’s used first to power the home or business it sits upon.
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it → produce → home
Excess power can be fed into a battery and stored for later — when the sun goes down — or exported into the grid for others to use.
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others → feed → grid
This benefits the owner by reducing their power bill, but it also benefits the grid both right away and over the long term.
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it → benefit → term
Because solar panels produce most during midday hours, they reduce the need for expensive natural gas generation at peak times, reducing the cost of electricity for everyone.
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they → produce → everyone
Over the long term, rooftop solar can save the power system from having to make costly upgrades to transmission lines because it produces power where it is used, replacing the power that would otherwise have to be delivered over long distances.
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that → save → distances
A recent study by Clean Energy Canada quantified those savings and found that rooftop solar, combined with smart thermostats, home batteries and two-way EV chargers, could save utilities and ratepayers $3.5 billion over the next 20 years.
uncertain
solar → quantify → years
As Canada and the world grapple with a massive increase in electricity demand to power data centres, EVs and heat pumps, “we’re going to need any power we can get,” said McKay.
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McKay → grapple → power
Ontario projects that electricity demand could increase by 90 per cent over the next 25 years.
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demand → project → years
You pay once for the device, and you’ve got a fixed price for the energy it will be producing for 20 plus years,” he said.
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he → pay → years
…and 18 more, not listed.
The Aporia
