Energy Efficiency Retrofits for Rural Households in South Carolina: Sol Systems and Google | Article

Rural electric cooperatives in South Carolina are developing energy efficiency projects for low-income households with an unlikely partner: Google. Sol Systems, a national renewable energy firm, and Google entered a tax equity investment partnership in 2023 to develop solar projects in North and South Carolina. Revenues from this partnership help fund pre-weatherization, safety repairs, and energy efficiency upgrades for rural households in the Southeast, particularly in South Carolina.

In 2024, the pre-weatherization pilot program funded by Sol Systems and Google was expanded to help more low-and moderate-income (LMI) households in rural South Carolina access valuable energy-efficiency retrofits for their homes. Pre-weatherization prepares homes for the proper installation of energy efficiency measures, and often involves making health and safety repairs (such as repairing an old roof or removing lead paint). If these health and safety issues are not addressed, they often preclude homes from receiving Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) grant funds from the U.S Department of Energy (DOE). Leveraging these existing federal funds can make whole-house energy efficiency retrofits more affordable for households with high energy burdens that need such retrofits the most.

During its first year, the pilot program addressed important health and safety issues for LMI households, reduced energy burdens, and improved comfort. Without these funds, many participating households would not have been able to repair their homes and make them suitable for energy efficiency retrofits.

These pre-weatherization funds supplement current energy efficiency programs, like the Help My House on-bill financing program run by a group of rural electric cooperatives (co-ops) in South Carolina. They can also be combined with federal funds for energy efficiency (e.g., the Department of Energy’s Home Energy Rebate Program) and existing utility rebates, enhancing energy savings, lowering energy burdens, and benefiting the overall community.

The Co-op Connection

Sol Systems is working with two rural electric co-ops in South Carolina, Aiken Electric Cooperative and Santee Electric Cooperative, to provide funding for pre-weatherization work. Co-ops, being owned by their customers, are inherently trusted intermediaries and community members. Google, Sol Systems, and the two rural electric co-ops created a private-public partnership to ensure the funds would go to LMI families served by the co-ops. Ultimately, this collaboration aims to help close the weatherization gap for LMI households in rural areas and reduce their energy burdens.

“These health and safety repair programs created with the rural electric cooperatives address health and safety measures first, which help implement energy efficiency measures,” said Adaora Ifebigh, the senior impact director at Sol Systems and an EESI advisory board member. “Retrofitting homes with energy efficiency measures is critical to tightening the building’s envelope and generating energy savings for the family. [The programs] also help size the on-site solar panels installed to further reduce energy consumption. By addressing health and safety measures, the programs remove barriers for more LMI households to participate in the clean energy economy, save energy, improve comfort, and improve their quality of life.”

Santee Electric Cooperative and Aiken Electric Cooperative are key members of the Help My House program. Launched in 2011, the Help My House program finances cost-effective energy efficiency and heat pump measures that are repaid over time via a line item on monthly utility bills. The program has helped families save, on average, about 35% on their energy bills, or 11,000 kWh annually. Most participants experience lower energy bills after the efficiency upgrades are performed, even with the inclusion of the loan repayment charges. The program has financed more than $11 million in energy efficiency upgrades for over 1,000 South Carolina households. Help My House is capitalized by a $15 million zero-percent loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Energy Savings Program (RESP). EESI helped the Electric Cooperatives of South Carolina set up the on-bill financing program and secure RESP funds to capitalize the program.

The pre-weatherization funds from Sol Systems and Google are combined with the Help My House program's on-bill financing funds and with DOE WAP grant funds to effectively provide a buy-down on health and safety measures, which are particularly important for low- and moderate-income households. Electric co-op members benefit from installed health and safety measures implemented at no or low cost. Once these repairs are completed, they can participate in the Help My House on-bill financing program offered to families by seven rural electric cooperatives in South Carolina.

“I learned about the Help My House Program when one of Aiken Electric Cooperative's staff members contacted me,” said Chad Wood, a Help My House program participant and a recipient of pre-weatherization funds from Sol Systems. “Help My House assists its members in upgrading their house equipment to reduce energy bills and improve their quality of life. Before Help My House, my only option was to take a personal loan to upgrade the energy equipment to survive.”

Sol Systems and Pre-Weatherization Funds

Founded in 2008, Sol Systems is a leading renewable energy firm that started as an aggregator of solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs), which represent the environmental and social benefits of solar electricity and can be traded in markets. Now, Sol Systems has developed into a company deploying renewable energy for thousands of customers, particularly in under-resourced communities.

The solar projects related to this program were built through a tax-equity investment partnership with Google. Through this financing transaction, Sol Systems (as the tax equity advisor) arranged for investments in projects generating clean energy tax credits, renewable energy credits, and other benefits for Google, in exchange for the funds necessary to help construct the projects. In most cases, solar developers interested in owning and operating their projects do not have enough tax liability to take advantage of the 30% federal clean energy investment tax credit. A partnership arrangement, such as this transaction with Google, allows solar developers to monetize the value of the federal tax credits with the help of Google, which can benefit from them. With the revenues generated from this transaction, Sol Systems will provide funds to support the people and communities in the areas hosting the solar arrays, including several in South Carolina, to enable sustainable economic growth. This could include educational and job training programs, and projects supporting community resilience through critical health and safety repairs and energy efficiency upgrades.

Sol Systems develops large-scale solar projects in states like South Carolina that will help power Google data centers with clean and renewable energy. Building solar power plants for Google in the Southeast has a dual purpose: first, it helps Google advance towards its goal of powering its data centers with 100% clean energy and, second, it increases renewable energy (and lowers carbon emissions) in states with low clean- energy penetration.

Pre-Weatherization Funds and the Help My House Program

Combining the existing Help My House program, DOE WAP grant funds, and the pre-weatherization funds offers multiple benefits. There is no need to duplicate administrative processes that are already in place for the on-bill financing program, which simplifies the application process. Addressing health and safety issues gives households an opportunity to benefit from energy efficiency measures that would otherwise been out of reach.

A great example of a target participant for this pre-weatherization program is an electric co-op member who wants to install energy efficiency upgrades but lives in an unsuitable home with a roof in need of replacement and holes in the walls. Such major deficiencies make it impossible to benefit from energy efficiency retrofits. To address such physical and structural barriers, co-ops have explored working with philanthropic partners that would provide grants to co-op members so they could fix their homes before applying for energy efficiency financing programs.

That is where Sol Systems and Google come in. Their pre-weatherization funding program helps electric co-op members install health and safety measures at no cost, allowing them to participate in the Help My House on-bill program and receive loans to install energy efficiency measures.

The Experience of Chad Wood

Living in a house with health and safety issues that were precluding him from accessing energy efficiency financing to address high energy bills, Chad Wood was ready for help. After agreeing to the project, Help My House energy auditors assessed Chad’s home for health and safety issues and potential energy savings.

Health and safety repairs performed at Chad’s home included relocating the electrical box, fixing a leaking septic tank, and installing a kitchen exhaust fan. As for the energy efficiency improvements, they included attic and ceiling insulation, a new HVAC unit, ductwork repair, installation of a bathroom fan, and floor and ceiling insulation.

Chad Wood's Repair Cost Breakdown	Amount
Pre-weatherization funds Grant to address health and safety repairs	$5,200
Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) grant	$4,800
Help My House on-bill financing Loan to be repaid over 10 years	$9,925
Total repairs	$19,925

The total project cost was $19,925 in energy upgrades and health and safety repairs. A $5,200 health and safety grant and $4,800 in energy efficiency rebates were provided. Total financing from the Help My House program was $9,925, with a low $99 monthly repayment charge on the utility bill. Before the upgrades, Wood's average monthly utility bill was $407. The predicted new monthly energy bill was $373, including the loan repayment. With the pre-weatherization repairs and the energy efficiency upgrades, Chad is experiencing $34 in monthly energy savings (or $408 annually), all while living in a more comfortable home with no health or safety issues.

"Chad Wood's experience exemplifies the transformative impact of our Help My House program,” said Gary Stooksbury, CEO of Aiken Electric Cooperative. “His journey underscores our commitment to providing accessible solutions for essential home upgrades and reducing energy burdens. Through collaborative efforts and innovative solutions, we’re not just improving homes; we're changing lives like Chad's, making sustainability and comfort more attainable for all our members while simultaneously contributing to a greener, more resilient community."

Author: Miguel Yañez-Barnuevo

The "Sol Systems and Pre-Weatherization Funds" section of this article was revised on January 6, 2025.