Solar and battery cost: rebates and what varies

This guide gives no price, on purpose. A solar panel system, with or without a battery, is a large project whose cost depends on many things. Instead of a figure, here is what sets one project apart from another under the rules of Hydro-Québec, the E.12-07 standard and the rebate programs, followed by what those rebates actually pay for.

Why no price is posted here

These are large projects, and their cost depends on many things: that is why we publish no price for a solar panel and battery system. We don’t give a fixed price over the phone, and that is deliberate. The exact price of your project is in the quote, written and free of charge.

The same goes for timing: no timeline is announced under our name, because it varies too, with the client, getting the permits and more. The only timelines quoted in this guide are the programs’ own, and they are attributed to them.

What we can describe, on the other hand, is what varies from one project to the next. Each point below comes from an official requirement or from what we install; none comes with a price.

System size

Hydro-Québec’s net metering sets a limit: no more than the estimated capacity needed to cover some or all of your energy needs, and never more than 1,000 kW. The size of a system is therefore capped at the estimated energy needs of the home it serves.

The number of kilowatts installed also matters on the rebate side: LogisVert is calculated at $1,000 per kilowatt installed, up to a maximum of 40% of the cost of buying and installing the panels. The program guide sets no dollar cap for the panels: the only limit is that 40%.

With or without a battery

Panels can be connected without a battery: with net metering, what the home doesn’t use goes to Hydro-Québec’s grid, and you get kilowatt-hour credits in return. A battery meets other needs. Hydro-Québec describes it as storage that holds energy for later use, and the application guide for the E.12-07 standard also mentions its use as backup power.

Its capacity, in kilowatt-hours, changes from one project to the next. For Rénoclimat, the system must be at least 5 kWh. For comparison, one of the batteries we install holds about 16 kWh.

A battery connected in parallel with the grid also needs Hydro-Québec’s authorization: it is up to the master electrician to file the request, ideally before buying. On the rebate side, it is not part of Hydro-Québec’s solar rebate, which excludes energy storage equipment; Rénoclimat is the program that can support it, under its own conditions.

The inverter and its certificates

The inverter is chosen early, because the connection request depends on it: the E.12-07 standard requires its UL 1741-SB certificate of compliance and its IEEE 2030.5 certificate. The standard’s application guide adds that it must have a neutral terminal, and that for backup power with a microgrid interconnection device, it must also be certified to UL 1741 CRD Multimode.

With a battery, Rénoclimat sets its own conditions for the inverter: a true sine wave output, a continuous capacity of at least 1.2 kW, a surge capacity of at least 2.5 kW, a connection to the grid and compliance with the E.12-07 standard.

One of the inverters we install is certified by CSA; its grid support functions are verified to UL 1741 SB and IEEE 1547.1-2020, and its interoperability to IEEE 2030.5-2018. As a general rule, we don’t install uncertified equipment.

Backup power

Keeping circuits running during an outage adds components to the installation. The application guide for the E.12-07 standard shows it: for backup power, the single-line diagram shows the switching device used to transfer critical loads, the panel serving those critical loads and, where applicable, the battery.

In one of the setups we install, the installation includes a secondary emergency panel, protected by a 60 A breaker, with a 60 A manual transfer switch at 120/240 V. Our page on home battery backup describes this emergency panel.

The electrical panel, the meter and the Internet

For Rénoclimat, batteries and inverters must be wired permanently to the home’s electrical panel. In the setup described above, the hybrid inverter is connected to the 200 A main panel, at 120/240 V, through a 100 A breaker.

The application guide for the E.12-07 standard sets two other conditions that concern the home: a smart (communicating) Hydro-Québec meter, and a wired Internet connection, by Ethernet cable, must be possible.

The roof

We install the panels ourselves. The roof that holds them, however, stays outside the solar rebate: repairing or replacing the roof is not eligible.

The permit, Hydro-Québec and the RBQ

Under the E.12-07 standard, a municipality may require a building permit to install solar panels. When the city requires one, the municipal permit is part of our job.

Hydro-Québec, for its part, charges no connection fees for the vast majority of self-generation projects. The timing, however, can change from one area to another: where self-generation is already highly concentrated, a request can be put on hold until capacity frees up on the grid.

Filing the connection request and following it through to final approval are part of our work. So is the declaration to the Régie du bâtiment du Québec, when one is required. Each step is explained in our guide Solar panels and Hydro-Québec: the process.

What the rebates cover, and what they leave out

Two programs can lower the cost of a project: Hydro-Québec’s LogisVert, for the panels, and Rénoclimat, a Québec government program, for the battery.

So both rebates are applied for after the work, with invoices. The money comes afterwards, on each program’s own timeline.

Can the two be added together? Nothing confirms it. Rénoclimat prohibits combining it with any assistance from Québec or Canadian government departments, agencies and Crown corporations. Under LogisVert, an accepted rebate means you may no longer apply for another rebate covering the same equipment or the same work. Before counting on both, ask each program.

Does your electricity come from a municipal network or a cooperative, rather than Hydro-Québec? LogisVert then asks for additional documents, among them your municipality’s or cooperative’s written authorization.

What to keep. For LogisVert, the invoice must show, among other things, the company’s RBQ licence number, the panels’ manufacturer and model, and what the purchase and the work cost. You also need the final connection approval, proof of ownership, the panels’ certificates and technical data sheets, and photos in which the panels can be counted. For Rénoclimat, the application brings together the property assessment roll, the detailed invoices, the contractor’s work compliance attestation form and photos of the work. That form is filled out and signed by the contractor: for a battery we install, it is part of our work. Our guide Rénoclimat 2026: battery and generator rebates covers the measure in detail.

DIY kit or installed system

Before comparing a kit with an installed system, here is what Hydro-Québec and the programs require, wherever the equipment comes from:

• Where it is bought: for LogisVert, the panels must be new, certified to the required CSA standards or their UL or IEC equivalents, and bought in Québec, in a store, or online from a business with a Québec address.
• When it is bought: Hydro-Québec advises buying the equipment only after its conditional approval. If the request is put on hold, equipment already bought cannot be connected to the grid until Hydro-Québec gives its final approval.
• Who installs it: LogisVert covers the complete installation of the panels and the inverter, cables and racking included, by an installer who holds the required RBQ licence subcategories.
• Who connects it: electrical work is reserved for electrical contractors, as the CMEQ points out. The connection request form is reserved for the electrical contractor, and for the rebate, a master electrician must have made the final connection request.
• The battery: Rénoclimat excludes work done by the owner themselves and portable batteries, and the system must be permanently connected to the electrical panel.

In other words, a kit does not exempt you from the request to Hydro-Québec, from the testing and the signed verification report, or from the permit when the city requires one.

How the quote works

The quote is written and free of charge.

On Hydro-Québec’s side, the first step is yours: choosing and hiring the electrical contractor who will make the connection. Then come the connection request, conditional approval before buying, installation, testing and final approval.

What our job includes:

• installing the panels, ourselves;
• the connection request to Hydro-Québec, and the follow-up through to final approval;
• the municipal permit, if the city requires one;
• declaring the work to the RBQ, when a declaration is required;
• for a battery, the Rénoclimat attestation form.

Our RBQ licence 5815-0137-01 includes subcategories 11.2 and 13.5, one of which Hydro-Québec requires for installing the panels, and subcategory 16 for the electrical work, and we are members of the CMEQ. That quote, written and free of charge, is what sets the exact price. The service itself is presented on our page Solar panel and battery installation.

Financing the project

Financing available through Financeit, subject to credit approval. Details are on our Financing page.

The Canada Greener Homes Loan, for its part, no longer accepts new applications: its funding is fully committed. Only loans that were already approved remain funded.

Frequently asked questions