BC Solar Rebates, Net Metering & BC Hydro Self-Generation

The BC Hydro Solar Rebate

BC Hydro pays $1,000 per kilowatt of installed panel capacity (DC). For a home the maximum is $5,000, which a 5 kW or larger system reaches. Commercial and multi-unit buildings can claim up to $10,000. The rebate can’t exceed 50% of the total installed cost, including labour.

A few things are worth knowing before you plan around it:

• You must be a BC Hydro customer at the property where the system is installed. New solar customers are enrolled on BC Hydro’s self-generation rate, and you apply for the rebate with the same application.
• Funding is first-come, first-served while it lasts. A rebate that is open today may not be open next spring.
• Eligible equipment and installer requirements apply. We file the application as part of the install.

On a typical 8 kW Kelowna system, a BC Hydro customer who claims the rebate breaks even around year 12, against around year 13 for a FortisBC customer with no rebate. The rebate still wins, but by less than it did under net metering, because BC Hydro now pays less for the power you export.

BC Hydro Self-Generation: What Replaced Net Metering

On July 1, 2026 BC Hydro closed its net metering rate (Rate Schedule 1289) to new customers. New solar systems now go on the self-generation rate (Rate Schedule 2289). Two things change:

• Surplus is paid, not banked. For each billing period, power you send to the grid is paid at a fixed 10¢ per kWh. Under net metering it was banked as kilowatt-hours and used to offset later bills at the full rate.
• Power you use yourself is worth the most. Every kWh your panels make while the house is using power still replaces power at the full BC Hydro rate. Only the surplus earns the lower 10¢.

Systems can be up to 100 kW AC. If you already have net metering with BC Hydro, you keep it for 10 years from your original start date, and then move to self-generation automatically.

For a new BC Hydro system this changes the design. We size to how much of your own power you will actually use, not just to your annual total. Daytime loads such as EV charging, pool pumps and heat pumps help, and so does a battery that stores midday power for the evening. Our payback figures assume a home without a battery uses about 40% of its solar power as it is made. Battery storage

The BC Hydro Battery Rebate and Peak Saver

BC Hydro also pays $500 per kWh of battery storage. For a home the rebate is capped at $1,500, or $5,000 if you enrol in BC Hydro’s Peak Saver program, which lets BC Hydro draw on your battery at times of peak demand. Battery-only installs are generally only eligible with Peak Saver. For everyone else the battery has to be paired with solar.

Peak Saver is a real trade-off: a larger rebate in return for BC Hydro using some of your stored energy at certain times. We explain exactly what that means for your backup plans before you sign up.

FortisBC: No Rebate, but Net Metering

FortisBC doesn’t currently offer a rebate for solar panels or batteries. Its electric rebates focus on heat pumps and heat pump water heaters. FortisBC customers do still get net metering: when your panels produce more than you use, the surplus is banked as kilowatt-hours and carried forward to offset future bills. At your annual settlement date, any credit you haven’t used is paid out at the rate FortisBC pays power producers. The program covers systems up to 50 kW.

Without a rebate, the key for a FortisBC customer is sizing to your annual use. Surplus still banked at the annual settlement is paid at a lower rate than the power it would have replaced, so oversizing costs you real money.

PST Exemption and Federal Programs

Qualifying solar generation equipment is exempt from BC’s 7% PST, which saves over a thousand dollars on a typical home system. We build it into our pricing rather than listing it as a separate discount.

Federal programs such as grants and interest-free loans have opened, changed and closed several times in recent years. Rather than list something that may have ended, we check what is current when we prepare your estimate and include anything you qualify for.

Common Rebate Mistakes We See

• Guessing your utility from the city name. Most of the City of Kelowna is FortisBC, and a quote that subtracts $5,000 you can’t claim has a payback that will never happen. Across the lake it is the other way around: West Kelowna, Westbank and Peachland are BC Hydro, and those homeowners can claim the rebate.
• Using old net-metering maths for a new BC Hydro system. A quote that still assumes BC Hydro banks your surplus at the full rate overstates your savings by roughly 20% a year.
• Oversizing to chase the maximum. The rebate tops out at 5 kW for a home. A bigger system only makes sense if you will actually use the power.
• Signing up for Peak Saver without reading the terms. The larger battery rebate is worth having, but know what it means for your backup plans first.
• Waiting too long. BC Hydro’s funding is first-come, first-served. If you qualify and the numbers work, the rebate won’t necessarily be there next year.

How We Handle the Paperwork

Rebate claims, net-metering and self-generation applications, and electrical permits are part of every installation we do. You won’t need to chase utility forms. Tell us your utility, or send a photo of your bill, and the rebate position goes straight into your written estimate.

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