Path-Q Solar

How should a business treat temporary contractors' electricity use when forecasting future demand for solar system sizing?

Answer

Classify contractor electricity use by whether it is one-time, recurring, seasonal, or likely to become permanent, then model each category separately. Include documented future commitments in the base case only when they are sufficiently certain; otherwise use scenario analysis rather than sizing the system entirely around temporary demand.

Key points

  • Identify contractor equipment, load profiles, operating dates, shifts, and expected end dates.
  • Separate contractor loads that use shared facilities from loads on dedicated circuits.
  • Use interval data or temporary metering to measure actual consumption and peak demand.
  • Model base, expansion, and contractor-departure cases and consider staged or expandable solar.

What it depends on

  • Contractor agreements and expected duration
  • Measured contractor load and operating schedule
  • Business growth plans and available electrical capacity
  • Solar sizing objective and flexibility for future expansion

Risks and trade-offs

  • Including a temporary load can create excess generation after the contractor leaves.
  • Excluding a likely recurring load can undersize the system and miss future savings.
  • Short-term high demand may affect electrical upgrades even if annual energy use is modest.

Information you may need

  • Contractor scopes, schedules, and renewal likelihood
  • Equipment inventory and interval or submeter data
  • Business forecast and facility plans
  • Solar design options and expansion costs

Your next step

What to do next

Measure or estimate contractor loads and obtain written duration assumptions, then ask the designer to show base, departure, and growth scenarios before selecting system size.

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SQ03152