Path-Q Solar
How should a landlord model solar savings when tenants pay a fixed utility charge but their daytime electricity consumption varies?
Answer
Model the landlord's result separately from the tenants' bill effect. Estimate solar production by time interval, compare it with actual tenant daytime consumption, and apply the lease's fixed-charge and allocation rules to determine who receives savings and who bears unrecovered costs.
Key points
- Use interval load data or defensible tenant-use scenarios rather than assuming fixed charges equal fixed consumption.
- Separate owner savings, tenant savings, avoided utility purchases, export value, operating costs, and financing payments.
- Model high-, base-, and low-daytime-consumption cases and tenant turnover.
- Check whether leases permit utility charges to change, solar benefits to be allocated, or costs to be recovered.
What it depends on
- Lease billing provisions and tenant consent requirements
- Tenant interval consumption and diversity
- Solar production profile and system ownership
- Applicable utility billing, export, and allocation rules
Risks and trade-offs
- Fixed tenant charges can leave the landlord with limited direct savings even when the system reduces utility purchases.
- Low daytime use may increase exports or reduce the value of generation.
- A billing arrangement that changes tenant charges can create contract, disclosure, or compliance risk.
Information you may need
- Leases and utility-allocation provisions
- Whole-building and, if available, tenant interval data
- Solar production and cost model
- Utility tariff and permitted billing structure
Your next step
What to do next
Create a time-based model with tenant-consumption scenarios and have the proposed allocation reviewed against the leases and applicable utility requirements.
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Some details may depend on your location, installer, utility, incentives, regulations, or specific property.
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