Roof-top solar power in Montana: Debate simmers over system size limits

The cost of installing solar-power systems on homes and businesses in Montana is as low as it’s ever been, industry officials say.

Yet expanding the scope of such systems for businesses and larger entities here is largely restricted by limits on "net metering," which allows a business to sell excess power that its solar system generates.

"I think it really inhibits the growth of the solar industry, by putting a 50-kilowatt cap on (net-metered) systems," says Todd Scott, co-owner of Bozeman Brewing Co., which installed a solar-power system on the roof of the brewery last year. "If that cap were larger, or it didn’t exist at all, you’re going to have some of the larger companies more interested in investing in solar."

By Mike Dennison

Full Story: http://www.kpax.com/story/32741811/roof-top-solar-power-in-montana-debate-simmers-over-system-size-limits