SunRun First to Offer Affordable Home Solar Power in Colorado

Tue Oct 13, 2009 9:00am EDT

New Colorado Policies Allow Leading Residential Solar Company to Offer Easy and
Affordable Solar Leases to Colorado Homeowners
DENVER--(Business Wire)--
SunRun, the leading national residential solar company, today announced the
expansion of its affordable solar service to Colorado homeowners, becoming first
in the state to offer homeowners a solar lease. Colorado homeowners who have not
yet considered solar panels for their homes due to high initial cost or
questions about panel maintenance and repairs will now be able to easily get
solar power through SunRun`s solar service. 

With SunRun, homeowners pay as little as $1,000 for a one-time system
installation fee, and then pay a low, monthly bill to have solar energy at home.
SunRun provides complete monitoring, repairs, insurance, and a performance
guarantee for all its customers, making it a simple option for homeowners who
don`t want to think about solar equipment or pay a high upfront cost to switch
the source of their electricity. Thousands of homeowners in California, Arizona
and Massachusetts currently use SunRun`s solar service. 

SunRun`s announcement comes on the heels of strong support for residential solar
from Colorado`s government. In April, Colorado Governor Bill Ritter signed a law
allowing solar companies, such as SunRun, to own and maintain solar panels on
residential roofs. This law allows homeowners to pay for solar power through a
lease, instead of purchasing solar panels, reducing upfront costs to get solar
by tens of thousands of dollars. Now, for the first time, clean energy is truly
accessible to Colorado homeowners. 

SunRun`s unique business approach is to partner with leading local solar
companies to design and install systems for its customers. In Colorado, SunRun
will partner exclusively with Namaste Solar, REC Solar and Real Goods Solar,
three of Colorado`s largest and most trusted solar installers. Since SunRun
makes residential solar realistic for a greatly expanded group of homeowners, it
often has a significant and positive impact on job creation at its local
partners. In some markets, SunRun has helped its partners grow available jobs in
sales, construction and design by as much as 100 percent. 

"I am pleased to welcome SunRun to Colorado as the newest member of our growing
New Energy Economy," said Colorado Governor Bill Ritter. "With great support
from the Legislature, we`ve passed some of the most forward-thinking legislation
in the country to help us attract companies like SunRun to Colorado. And not
only are we creating sustainable jobs, we are lowering energy costs, increasing
energy security and leading America toward a new energy future." 

"Most people would like to have clean energy in their homes, but it doesn`t
always make financial sense for them to spend a lot of money to get started.
SunRun makes it really easy to have solar panels. Most people will see payback
from their initial installation fee in less than three years," said Lynn Jurich,
president and cofounder of SunRun. "Governor Ritter and his staff are some of
the country`s leading green thinkers, and we`re excited to be working with them
to develop clean energy solutions that make financial sense for homeowners and
taxpayers." 

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS110433+13-Oct-2009+BW20091013