MGE's Shared Solar Program is Fully Subscribed

Customers interested in the community solar program may join the waiting list.

Madison, Wis., July 8, 2021—Madison Gas and Electric's (MGE) community solar program, Shared Solar, is now fully subscribed. This optional program provides more than 2,000 residential and business electric customers with sustainable, carbon-free energy from two local arrays.

The program, which began serving customers in 2017, expanded with the addition of a 5-megawatt (MW) solar array in Middleton. Shared Solar provides customers throughout MGE's electric service territory an easy and affordable way to power their home or business with local solar.

"We'd like to thank our Shared Solar participants for their support of clean, local energy," said MGE Manager of New Products and Services Cheri Salmon. "Our partnership helps us grow local solar and advance our shared energy goals as we work toward achieving net-zero carbon electricity."

Join the waiting list

Customers may visit mge.com/sharedsolar to join the Shared Solar waiting list. Customers on the waiting list will have the opportunity to participate if customers leave the program or if another array is added to serve the program. Participation is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

How Shared Solar works

Participants pay a minimal upfront fee to purchase shares of local solar from Shared Solar arrays and receive a stable price per kilowatt-hour for 25 years. The average household participating in Shared Solar has about $3 per month added to their electric bill. Program participants can purchase shares to power up to half of their annual energy use with Shared Solar.

About the Shared Solar arrays

Shared Solar participants are currently served by two arrays in Middleton. MGE's first Shared Solar project, a 500-kilowatt array on the roof of Middleton's Municipal Operations Center, began serving customers in January 2017.
 
Morey Field Solar is the second array to serve Shared Solar participants. MGE broke ground on Morey Field Solar in fall 2019. The array began serving customers in summer 2020.

Seventy percent of the 5-MW array at Middleton Municipal Airport serves the program. The remaining 30 percent of the array serves the Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District and the City of Middleton under separate Renewable Energy Rider (RER) agreements. 
 
Under an RER, MGE partners with a large energy user to tailor a renewable energy solution to meet that customer's energy needs. RER customers are responsible for costs associated with the renewable generation facility and distribution costs to deliver the energy to the customer. The model advances shared sustainability goals and grows clean energy in our community.

MGE's net‐zero carbon electricity goal

In May 2019, MGE announced its goal of net-zero carbon electricity by 2050, making it one of the first utilities in the nation to commit to net-zero carbon by mid-century. MGE's net-zero goal is consistent with the latest climate science from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) October 2018 Special Report on limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

To achieve deep decarbonization, MGE is growing its use of renewable energy, engaging customers around energy efficiency and working to electrify transportation, all of which are key strategies identified by the IPCC.

About MGE

MGE generates and distributes electricity to 157,000 customers in Dane County, Wis., and purchases and distributes natural gas to 166,000 customers in seven south-central and western Wisconsin counties. MGE's parent company is MGE Energy, Inc. The company's roots in the Madison area date back more than 150 years.