A coalition of solar manufacturers, software companies, service providers and a community bank have launched the Strong Tail Solar Alliance, a partnership formed to lower costs and widen financing access for U.S. residential and commercial solar installers.
Founding members include Bodhi, Climate First Bank, Scanifly, JA Solar, Damaris Solutions and Krannich Solar. The alliance is operated by OneEthos, a Climate First Corp subsidiary. The coalition’s formation comes in the aftermath of the federal government’s repeal of the residential investment tax credit, commonly known as 25D.
Since the tax credit is no longer active, many residential solar installers have pivoted to installing third-party owned projects, which still qualify for the 48E commercial solar tax credit. Strong Tail Solar hopes to help installers return to building home-owned solar.
Alliance members combine their scale to give installers in the OneEthos approved installer network reduced price-per-watt rates that are often reserved for much larger companies. That could mean lower equipment prices, access to software that can reduce operating costs and marketing support built for solar companies. The coalition aims to have approximately 25¢/W or more in savings for qualified installers.
“The market should reward companies for doing great work and standing behind it, not simply for being the biggest. Scale can get you better pricing or cheaper capital, advantages that say nothing about how well you install or stand behind your work,” said Scott Nguyen, founder of Bodhi and head of growth at OneEthos. “With 25D gone, we want local installers to be able to compete on what actually matters: quality, service and whether someone will still answer the phone years from now. That’s why we created the alliance.”
In addition to member discounts, the Alliance will provide ongoing education and insights about the issues installers face. To kick off, the Alliance is hosting a three-part webinar series this fall:
- September 30: How to Fill Your Sales Funnel Post-ITC
- October 14: Navigating Pricing Power, Tariffs and Supply Chains
- November 4: Managing Project Risk and Working Capital as a Small Installer
If interested in supporting small or medium installers and want to join the Alliance, please contact Scott Nguyen at [email protected].
“Most solar installers in the U.S. are small and medium shops that have built trusted relationships with their communities. Their customers are homeowners who want the benefit of owning their system,” said Jason Steinberg, CEO of Scanifly.
News item from the Strong Tail Solar Alliance
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