As community solar gets underway, some companies face mistrust from New Mexicans

After years of waiting, New Mexicans can sign up to have community solar energy power their homes — no rooftop solar panels necessary — and get cheaper monthly utility bills for their participation.

The idea can sound too good to be true — something that’s caused people to fear they’re being scammed.

“That’s actually our biggest challenge,” said Craig Armstrong, chief operating officer of Solstice Power Technologies, a company working with solar developers to sign up customers.

“It’s funny, when I first joined the company, I go, ‘This is the easiest product to sell — there’s no cost to it, and it’s savings,’” he said. “And what we find is, especially on the energy side, there have been historic problems with trust of people signing on.”

A law signed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham in 2021 enacted the state’s community solar program, but it took years to finalize the inner workings and rules of the program. The first community solar projects broke ground earlier this year and are expected to start generating power as early as this summer.

As developers continue hammering away at construction sites, of which there are dozens, other staff are door-knocking, cold-calling and advertising in any way possible to make sure New Mexicans know about the program — but it hasn’t been easy.

“It does sound a little bit too good to be true,” said Dylan Connelly, director of community and solar development at Affordable Solar, one of the developers Solstice is working for. “You know, it’s come as you go. You don’t need to own the house. It’s not on your roof. There’s no upfront payments. There’s no credit checks.”

Solar scams gained prevalence as the technology became more widespread and popular in the early 2020s. The scams can make companies around for the short term a quick buck, said Megan Bott, a community and business impact manager with the New Mexico-based Positive Energy Solar.

Bott is urging consumers to stick with companies that have been around for a long time and will be around if any issues arise down the road.

“There are steps to take before signing any contract,” she said.

Armstrong added that Solstice works with community organizations to help prove the community solar program is valid.

A limited amount of energy is available under the program to power homes, so companies are signing up New Mexicans now. At least 30% of each solar project’s energy must go to low-income communities — households with annual incomes at or below 80% of the area median income or that participate in state low-income programs.

The program is available to both homeowners and renters.

Solstice, which is contracted with 16 community solar sites, has a sign-up capacity of about 20,000 households and 2,000 businesses, according to Armstrong. He said the company had signed up about 1,500 low-income customers as of late May.

People who sign up to get solar energy through the program can anticipate savings on their utility bills. Connelly estimated that savings will add up to 15-20% per month.

“Community solar is really about the equity of connecting with folks who have wanted to do it and haven’t been able to because they rent or they don’t have perfect credit scores or they need a new roof — you know, all the different myriad of reasons,” Connelly said.