Texas · Performance incentive · Deep-stack program
Austin Energy Solar PBI
Pays residential solar owners in Texas based on actual output -- see the rate, eligibility, and how it changes payback below.
- $0.05/kWh
- stated benefit
- Residential
- eligible customers
- 11.8 yr
- Texas baseline payback
- 4
- other Texas programs
Deep-stack program · early directory
Texas runs a 5-program DSIRE stack; this performance incentive is one layer on a 11.8-year modeled baseline, not the whole story.
- Stack5 programs
- In-state #1/4
- Type #1/8
- Baseline11.8 yr
In-state directory place #1 of 4 (early alphabet). National performance incentive directory #1 of 8. Amounts and eligibility change; verify with the official program page before relying on a dollar figure. Informational only - not financial advice. See our disclaimer.
Program description
Austin Energy offers a performance-based incentive for residential solar systems.
Program at a glance
- Program type
- Performance incentive
- Eligible customers
- Residential
- Stated benefit
- $0.05/kWh for 10 years
- State electricity rate
- 14¢/kWh
- Texas solar score
- 49/100
Solar's trajectory in Texas
The market this incentive operates in: total installed solar capacity in Texas reported to the EIA.
Texas's solar incentive stack
How this performance incentive sits among Texas's 4 tracked programs, by type
- Tax exemption
Tax exemption
1 programs
- Net metering
Net metering
1 programs
- Performance
Performance
1 programs
- Rebate
Rebate
1 programs
What this shows Texas tracks 4 incentive types, 1 of them performance-based like this one -- paid on actual output rather than a one-time credit, stacking with the state's other program types.
How this performance incentive layers inside Texas's deep stack
The Austin Energy Solar PBI pays based on actual measured generation rather than a one-time credit, one of Texas's DSIRE-tracked solar incentive programs. Eligibility is scoped to residential customers, with a stated benefit of $0.05/kWh for 10 years. DSIRE lists no scheduled sunset, though enabling legislation and appropriations can still be revised year to year.
That baseline is slower than most states, which raises the stakes for every incentive on the table. Texas averages 5.7 kWh/m²/day of usable sunlight and residential rates of 14¢/kWh, producing an estimated 9,986 kWh/year and $1,398 of annual utility offset on a typical 6 kW system costing $16,500. That baseline already implies a 11.8-year simple payback and a 25-year modeled net of roughly $18,450 before this incentive - every dollar this performance incentive delivers compresses that payback further.
Texas bundles a deep incentive stack, so this program rarely stands alone. Texas has 5 solar incentive programs indexed in DSIRE, including adjacent options like TX Renewable Energy Property Tax Exemption, TX Retail Net Metering (Deregulated Areas), CPS Energy Solar Rebate (San Antonio). The state's net-metering policy is classified as partial, which governs how excess generation is credited and often decides whether a given program is worth claiming for a specific household.
Other Texas incentives
Frequently asked questions
Where does the Austin Energy Solar PBI sit in Texas's deep program stack?
How does this performance incentive work beside Texas's other programs?
Who qualifies, and why is this an early in-state directory row?
How does this incentive affect solar ROI in Texas?
Which other Texas programs stack with this one?
Incentive data from the DSIRE (Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency); state solar economics from NREL and the U.S. EIA. See our methodology · Texas solar data · ROI calculator · All incentives.