This morning at 9:00 a.m., Block 2 of the Commonwealth Solar Stimulus Rebate Program opened to applications for $4 million in funding for commercial solar installations. At just before noon, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center sent around a nice email letting everyone know that all funds have been spoken for and the program is now closed. Executive Director Patrick Cloney wrote to express his “heartfelt appreciation to everyone involved in the solar industry in Massachusetts for his or her continued hard work in expanding solar renewable energy generation within the Commonwealth.”

You may remember that Block 1 of the Solar Stimulus program also “sold out” in record time. Each quarter, projects 10-200 kW in size get their paperwork in order and wait for the program’s opening to submit for funding. Projects can’t remain in queue after each quarter has closed, so each new block of funding presents equal opportunity for all comers.

Home solar installations and small commercial projects under 10 kW in size may still apply for funding through the state’s other solar rebate program, Commonwealth Solar II. Rebates for these systems are effectively capped at 5 kW even though larger systems may participate; they’ll just be proportionately less incentivized. And all projects can submit for participation in the state’s new solar renewable energy credit (SREC) trading market, in which each logged megawatt-hour of solar energy can earn its system’s owner $300-600. Sound like a good deal? It is. If you’re not sure if your home or small business would be a good fit for solar, just fill out our info form and we can help you figure it out.

Moral of the story: if you have a large solar installation in mind in the Bay State, start the process of getting quotes today. Then choose an installer and get your ducks in a row so you can be ready to submit for funding from Block 3 of the Commonwealth Solar Stimulus.