A basic 800-watt plug-in solar kit — the configuration this campaign asks New Brunswick to legalize — typically sells for €279–529 in Germany (median roughly €369, or $502 CAD pre-tax after stripping VAT and converting at Bank of Canada monthly average). On a south-facing Moncton balcony it would generate about 761 kWh per year.
At New Brunswick's typical variable residential rate (15 ¢/kWh including energy, transmission, and distribution charges that scale with usage), that's roughly $58.24 a year in avoided charges. A median-priced kit pays for itself in 8 years 10 months — then keeps producing for another 17+ years of its 25-year lifetime. Over the panel's full life, that's roughly $863 of cumulative savings that New Brunswick households are currently being denied.
Assumptions skew deliberately conservative: vertical (90°) panel mounting (pure vertical is optimal only at the poles; any realistic installed tilt produces more), 60% self-consumption rate (typical households hit 70%+), 15% shading derate, and no allowance for rising electricity prices. We publish the floor, not the ceiling.
Monthly kWh production — Moncton, 800W vertical south
Raw PVWatts output; the payback math above applies shading + self-consumption derates on top.
Sources: NREL PVWatts v8 (monthly production, NSRDB satellite dataset, south orientation, 90° tilt). New Brunswick Utilities Commission Rate of Last Resort (energy charge, authoritative) plus conservative T&D estimates pending bill verification. Product prices: EU retailer listings, VAT-stripped, converted at Bank of Canada monthly average. Full methodology → · Try your own numbers →
NB Power rate increase in just two years. Households are feeling it.
Green MLA David Coon explicitly named plug-in solar for apartments as a priority.
One bridge away — just signed plug-in solar into law. New Brunswick can see the precedent from here.
Per kWh and rising fast. The economics get better with every rate hike.
NB Power applies the same net metering interconnection framework to a 400W balcony panel as to a commercial rooftop installation. Provincial electrical permits and licensed-electrician requirements don’t scale down either. For a province facing real energy-policy pressure and a minister (Legacy) holding both the Finance and Energy portfolios, the simplest regulatory simplification — a plug-in class for certified appliances — is sitting unused.
No new legislation is needed. The authority to make these changes already exists.
Create a plug-in generation class in New Brunswick’s electrical safety regulations for certified systems under 1200W. Reduced permit and electrician requirements when certified equipment is used for cord-and-outlet connection only.
Direct NB Power to create a plug-in generation category for certified systems under 1200W, exempt from net metering application and meter upgrade. On-site use only, anti-islanding required.
Many New Brunswick residents live in multi-unit buildings where rooftop solar isn’t feasible. Start the conversation with your board about balcony solar — it’s the one change that unlocks renewable electricity for renters and condo owners.
Your MLA can raise this issue in the legislature and push for regulatory modernization.
Find your MLA →We’re looking for an organization or individual in New Brunswick to lead the local plug-in solar advocacy effort. If you’re interested, get in touch.