A Consumer''s Guide to Rooftop Solar and Home
To help homeowners tackle this tangle of information, PNNL researchers Jessica Kerby and Bethel Tarekegne published an open
Rooftop solar with BESS is a practical, scalable solution to modern energy challenges. It empowers commercial and industrial users with control, flexibility, and cost savings, while supporting a cleaner, more resilient grid. As energy systems evolve, solar + storage is poised to be a cornerstone of the distributed, decarbonized future.
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) researchers are here to help. Homeowners must navigate a quagmire of complicated policies to determine whether the energy savings from rooftop solar panels or battery energy storage systems (BESS) are worth the high upfront cost.
Without BESS, the same household could install 10 kW of rooftop solar, which would cost $28,700 and save $1,567 per year. PGE and the state of Oregon both offer incentives for rooftop solar and battery energy storage. With the utility, state, and federal incentives, the combined solar and BESS system could be paid back within 11 years.
Even with the benefits of rooftop solar and battery energy storage, the upfront cost of these systems is still a barrier to adoption. In some cases, especially for BESS, the time it takes for a homeowner to recoup the cost of the system with energy savings is longer than the lifetime of the technology itself.
PDF version includes complete article with source references.
Get specifications and technical data for our MW-scale energy storage and PV integration solutions.
45 Energy Innovation Park
London WC2H 8NA, United Kingdom
+44 20 7783 1966
Monday - Friday: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM GMT