CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Solar energy is shining brighter than ever in northern Illinois as ComEd today announced that it has interconnected more than 1 gigawatt of distributed energy resources (DER) capacity to the ComEd grid, including 57,780 residential rooftop solar systems. The more than 59,000 DER on the ComEd smart grid include 1,582 commercial systems, 118 community solar farms, 23 industrial and two utility scale projects, helping to place Illinois first among Midwestern states based on DER and second for total capacity, according to the Solar Energy Industry Association.
“Achieving the 1-gigawatt milestone for DER reflects progress with the adoption of distributed energy resources and our commitment to helping residential, commercial and industrial customers take full advantage of the benefits of solar energy,” said Scott Vogt, vice president of Strategy and Energy Policy at ComEd. “With available state and federal incentives, this is a great time to go solar, and we are here to help customers every step of the way.”
“For ComEd to reach 1 gigawatt of distributed energy resources on its system illustrates the positive impact that our equitable energy policies are making in Illinois, and the importance of transparency and open communication between utilities and the developer community and strong customer education,” said Brian Granahan, director of the Illinois Power Agency. “Everyone benefits from solar energy, so it’s important to work together in support of achieving our state’s renewable energy goals.”
Over the past five years, ComEd has supported 114% annual growth in DER for residential customers and 25% annual growth for C&I customers. Community solar has grown more than 4,000% since the first project was placed into service in the ComEd service territory in 2019. A gigawatt is equal to 1,000 megawatts (MW), or 1 billion watts, which is equivalent to about 3.12 million photovoltaic panels, 431 utility scale wind turbines and 100 million LED light bulbs.
Through May of this year, ComEd has received a record volume of 8,273 new interconnection applications and completed 5,073 systems totaling 95.76 MW of capacity, demonstrating the positive impact of climate legislation in Illinois and growing consumer interest in managing energy bills and reducing their carbon footprint with solar energy.
ComEd expects that DER capacity will increase to over 1,900 MW by 2025 and to more than 3,600 MW by 2030, or enough energy to power approximately 120,000 homes for one year. In addition to solar resources, DER technologies also include assets that can help balance and control demand on the grid, such as battery storage and batteries in electric vehicles used to export power back to the grid.
For customers with overly shady roofs or who rent or live in a multi-family dwelling, community solar may be a better option than private residential solar panels. Community solar participants subscribe to a large solar energy project owned by an independent developer and earn credits on their monthly ComEd bills for their portion of the electricity produced by the project. By the end of this year, ComEd expects to have more than 150 community solar projects interconnected to its distribution system serving a total of about 40,000 customers.
Rebate programs are available to commercial and residential renewable energy facilities. The rebate is valued at up to $300 per kilowatt for an eligible distributed generation facility, such as rooftop solar, and up to $300 per kilowatt-hour for an associated energy storage device.
The multi-year grid and rate plans that ComEd filed with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) outline the proposed investments required to support this rapid expansion of renewable energy and help ensure equitable access to the benefits of clean energy under the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act. The plans align with ComEd 2030, the company's vision for a carbon-free energy future that will benefit all communities and meet customers' changing needs for the rest of this decade and beyond.
About ComEd
ComEd is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation (NASDAQ: EXC), a Fortune 250 energy company with approximately 10 million electricity and natural gas customers – the largest number of customers in the U.S. ComEd powers the lives of more than 4 million customers across northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the state’s population. For more information visit ComEd.com and connect with the company on Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.
