LightReach Battery-Only Leases (Palmetto EnergyBackup)

LightReach Energy Backup is Palmetto's standalone battery lease program. Homeowners get an energy storage system with no upfront cost, no credit impact, and a fixed monthly payment. LightReach owns the equipment and covers maintenance and repairs for the full term (10 or 12 years). Here is the full overview.

Enrolling with Palmetto

Energy Backup is generally available, and may already be enabled for your organization. To check, reach out to LightReach to confirm your active programs.

If not yet enrolled, an owner or authorized person at the installer org can enroll. To do so,

1. Start a chat in LightReach

2. Select "Chat w/Org Ops (Org Settings)"

3. Select "Energy Backup - Enroll now!" when prompted

4. Submit the Energy Backup enrollment form

Note: This is a separate enrollment from enabling batteries for the Solar Energy Plan (PV + Storage), which is done under Solar → Installer Admins: Org Settings → Battery Enablement.

Setup and Syncing

Contact Enerflo Support to turn on Palmetto Energy Backup Leases. Once activated, sync products by going to Settings > Pricing > Finance Options, where there will be a new finance option called "Palmetto Energy Backup". Battery only leases will be found here instead of the existing LightReach Finance option.

Creating a Deal

To use a LightReach battery only lease, follow the steps in this article for creating a battery only/existing system deal. Briefly,

Create a consumption profile. This is used to determine manufacturer pricing caps for the market.
Create an existing system on the design stage. Only annual production and system size are required.
Create a new design with the existing system and add at least one battery. Proceed with the proposal and financing as usual using this design.

Potential Errors

Max Amount Validation: caused by creating a proposal with a price over the allowed amount. To resolve, reduce the price or try a different battery.

Pricing Not Available for Utility: the selected utility is not supported for Energy Backup. Find the list of available utilities here.

Consumption Profile Validation: caused by using a design without selecting a consumption profile.

Unsupported/Unmapped Manufacturer: caused by using a battery by an unapproved manufacturer. If you believe this is incorrect, please contact Enerflo Support about getting the manufacturer added.

Solar Design: caused by using a design that includes solar arrays with inverters or modules. Energy Backup is only to be used with one or more batteries.

Multiple Battery Manufacturers: caused by using more than one manufacturer. This is currently not supported, change all batteries to the same manufacturer.

FAQ

What states are available?

Palmetto Energy Backup is currently available in the following states -- and actively expanding: AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL, MD, MA, MI, NV, NJ, NC, OH, OR, PN, SC, TX and VA. *

*For current availability, it’s best to confirm with Palmetto as they continue to expand coverage.

What happens after the term ends?

The customer can buyout, renew, or upgrade. More info here.

Can Energy Backup batteries be set to self-consumption or arbitrage mode?

Enerflo only supports Backup Battery Purpose at this time, but will be updated to self-consumption with a minimum reserve of 20%

Are there restrictions on existing solar, including financing?

No. Any pre-existing onsite solar must be compatible with the new battery system and not create performance issues. While the pre-existing financing type is not directly relevant, customers with existing solar will be asked to acknowledge any risks related to their existing system in both the Energy Backup contract and their Palmetto account setup.

Can a customer have an existing battery on site?

No. The Energy Backup program requires that there be no existing batteries installed.

Can a customer mix battery models on a single project?

No. All batteries on a project must be from the same manufacturer. You cannot combine different battery types (e.g., a Powerwall 3 with an Enphase IQ Battery 10C) on a single install.

Are there pricing caps on batteries?

Yes. LightReach has per-manufacturer battery caps based on utility, as well as a total system system cap. Reach out to LightReach directly for more details.