Florida Public Service Commission says Tesla can offer residential solar equipment leases
The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) issued Tuesday a declaratory statement affirming that Tesla, LLC can offer residential solar equipment leases in the state.
In its statement, the PSC found that Tesla’s residential solar equipment lease does not constitute a sale of electricity, offering its solar equipment lease to consumers will not make Tesla a public utility under Florida law and the residential solar equipment lease will not subject Tesla or its customer lessees to PSC regulation.
PSC rules allow leasing of renewable energy equipment, as long as the lessor is not effectively selling the customer electricity. Homeowners may purchase or lease equipment to produce electricity for personal use and also benefit from interconnection and net metering with their local utility.
This decision marks the third time in the past year the PSC agreed that a solar equipment lease does not constitute a sale of electricity. In 2018, the commission issued similar declaratory statements for Sunrun, Inc., and Vivint Solar Developer, Inc.
“While today’s declaration is limited to the facts in Tesla’s petition, companies operating under the same facts can rely upon this declaration as well,” PSC Chairman Art Graham said.
