Connecticut - Energy Storage Solutions (ESS)

By pairing Connecticut’s ESS program with the Palmetto Energy Backup Lease, homeowners can lower their effective cost for a dual Powerwall 3 system from $190/month to roughly $46/month. That translates to an estimated $18,090 in total 10-year incentive value-and Palmetto passes 100% of those earnings directly to the customer. Onboarding takes less than a week: simply complete your CT Green Bank contractor registration and submit the Palmetto CT ESS Attestation Form to start selling.

How to Use This Document:

Everything you need to sell and install battery storage through Connecticut’s ESS program on LightReach-built for sales teams and install partners alike.

New to CT ESS? Read top-to-bottom to build your foundation, from certification to milestone sign-offs. Already up to speed? Jump directly to your target area:

Overview & Pricing Example | Compensation & customer pitch
Getting Certified | Requirements to get started
Milestone Requirements | What to submit at each phase
FAQ | Quick answers

Overview:

Connecticut’s Energy Storage Solutions (ESS) program turns standard backup batteries into revenue-generating assets. Administered by the CT Green Bank alongside Eversource and United Illuminating, the program pays homeowners for sharing stored power with the grid during peak demand-giving you a compelling, concrete dollar figure to lead your pitch.

State Target: 1,000 MW of battery storage deployed by 2030.
Core Value Prop: Converts a standard protection product into an income-earning investment.
Sales Impact: Provides immediate financial payback to reduce effective system cost.

Homeowners who enroll receive two types of incentive payments:

Enrollment incentive

A one-time payment from CT Green Bank after the system is confirmed enrolled. $30/kWh of nameplate capacity for standard residential customers, up to $130/kWh for customers in grid-edge locations. Per CT Green Bank rules, this incentive will be paid directly to the registered contractor on the project. Palmetto’s expectation is that this enrollment incentive be conveyed to the customer through the reduction in lease pricing, by reducing the battery system cost by an amount equal to the incentive.

Performance incentive

Paid twice per year by the customer's utility based on how the battery actually performed during grid dispatch events. $300/kW per year (gross program rate) for standard residential customers across the full 10-year program term. Higher rates apply for customers in underserved communities or low-income households. Grid-edge customers receive a higher enrollment incentive ($130/kWh) but the same $300/kW performance rate as standard customers. The performance adders apply only to underserved and low-income customers ($450/kW and $550/kW respectively).

Who receives the incentives?

Under our current approach, the customer receives both — the enrollment payment and all performance payments — in full, albeit through different mechanisms. The Performance Incentive paid to the customer over time, and the Enrollment incentive conveyed to them through lower lease payments. Palmetto does not capture any portion of either incentive while we work to finalize a separate aggregator arrangement. And as stated above, under Connecticut Green Bank program rules, the Enrollment incentive is paid directly to the registered contractor for the project. Palmetto expects the full value of the incentive to be passed through to the customer by applying it as a reduction in the battery system cost, resulting in a lower lease payment. When that changes, we'll update this article and communicate it directly to partners before it affects any active projects.

Standard Customer Pricing Example

Standard Customer Pricing Example Standard rates without adders (Grid-Edge, Low-Income, or Underserved Community). If your customer qualifies for adders, their incentive value will be higher—run their address through the CT ESS Residential Incentive Estimate Calculator prior to your sales pitch.

System Specifications

Equipment: 2 × Tesla Powerwall 3 ($24,500 Gross Price)
Contract: Palmetto Energy Backup Lease ($190.19/mo | 12-year term | 0% escalator)
Nameplate Capacity: 27 kWh total (13.5 kWh each)
AC Power Output: 10 kW
Avg. Grid Dispatch Contribution: 7.2 kW (Based on Tesla’s 3.6 kW/unit benchmark, assuming a 20% backup reserve and 3-hour average event duration)

Incentive Breakdown

Incentive Type	Calculation	Total Value	Payment Details
Upfront Enrollment	$30/kWh × 27 kWh	$810	Paid lump-sum by CT Green Bank upon Confirmation of Enrollment. Sent directly to customer. (Net Price: $23,700)
Annual Performance	$240/kW × 7.2 kW	~$1,728/yr	Paid bi-annually by Eversource/UI for Years 1–10 (equivalent to ~$144/mo). Net rate after Tesla’s 20% admin fee (gross rate: $300/kW).
10-Year Total Value	$810 + (10 × $1,728)	~$18,090	Total incentive value realized over the 10-year term.

Financial Impact:

Gross Lease Payment: $190/month
Avg. Monthly ESS Earnings: -$144/month
Effective Monthly Cost: ~$46/month (Guaranteed flat rate across Years 1–10)

How to Pitch This in the Sales Conversation

"This system carries a standard lease of $190 a month. However, Connecticut’s ESS program pays you directly to share stored energy with the grid during peak events—averaging roughly $144 a month back in your pocket. That drops your effective cost to about $46 a month, while giving you complete blackout protection."

Sales Tip: Keep it simple—let the math do the heavy lifting. The performance rate stays flat for all 10 years, avoiding complex end-of-term step-downs.

Important Note: This example is for illustrative purposes and does not constitute a formal quote or guarantee. Always check adders prior to calling: Grid-Edge customers receive a $130/kWh upfront incentive (vs. $30/kWh), and Low-Income or Underserved Community households qualify for higher performance rates.

Certification & Onboarding

Getting certified to sell ESS in Connecticut

Getting set up to sell ESS in CT is a two-step process. Most partners complete both within a week.

Register with CT Green Bank as an approved program contractor. This is a state requirement that happens outside of Palmetto. Submit your application directly to CT Green Bank using their contractor application form. This process is between you and CT Green Bank — Palmetto isn't involved in that review.
Sign the CT ESS Attestation Form with Palmetto's compliance team. Review and sign the CT ESS Attestation Form to confirm you understand the terms, conditions, and responsibilities that come with selling LightReach battery systems in CT. Once we receive your signed attestation, we'll review it within 5 business days and follow up via your submission ticket. Battery pricing won't be enabled until this step is complete.

Lightreach M1/M2 Requirements:

What you need to submit at each milestone:

Every CT battery project has a decision baked into the M1 submission: are you enrolling this customer in the ESS program, or not? That answer determines what paperwork you need.

M1 — Installation package

No matter what you decide, every CT storage project requires the CT ESS Confirmation Form at M1. This is how you tell us which path you're taking. There are no exceptions.

If you're opting the customer out, that form is all you need.

If you're enrolling the customer, you'll also need two additional items before M1 can be completed:

CT ESS Customer Disclosure Form — requires the customer's signature. This confirms they understand what they're agreeing to by participating in the program.
Reservation of Capacity (ROC) Email — this comes from CT Green Bank after you've submitted the customer's enrollment application through the CT Green Bank Customer Enrollment Platform. It confirms the program has a spot reserved for their system. You'll need to be a registered eligible contractor before you can access the platform.

M2 — Installation complete

M2 only has a requirement if the customer is enrolled. You'll need to submit one of the following — either works:

The Confirmation of Enrollment (COE) email from CT Green Bank, or
A PDF download from the application portal showing the customer's name and a project status of "Pending Payment"

Both documents confirm the enrollment went through. If you have one, you don't need the other.

Frequently Asked Questions

CT. Program FAQ Here - https://energystoragect.com/contractor-faq/

	Question	Answer
1	Are all LightReach AVL battery products eligible for the CT ESS program?	Yes, as of now. That said, both the LightReach AVL and the CT ESS approved equipment list are maintained separately and updated independently. Don't assume a product that was eligible last quarter still is — check both lists before quoting a system.
2	How does the enrollment incentive get paid, and who receives it?	CT Green Bank pays the enrollment incentive directly to the customer once the system receives a Confirmation of Enrollment. The customer must be listed as the incentive beneficiary on the application — not the installer, and not Palmetto. This is the customer's money, and the application needs to reflect that from the start.
3	How does the performance incentive get paid?	The customer's utility — Eversource or United Illuminating depending on their service territory — calculates the payment based on the battery's actual average contribution during grid dispatch events and pays the customer directly, twice per year. Once the system is enrolled, no further action is needed from the installer.
4	Is Palmetto LightReach an approved participant in the ESS program?	Yes. Palmetto LightReach is recognized by CT Green Bank as both an approved Third-Party Owner and an approved contractor, which is what allows us to originate and install systems that qualify for the program.
5	How do I estimate what a specific customer's incentive will be?	Use the CT ESS Residential Incentive Estimate Calculator at energystoragect.com. It accounts for system size, customer category (standard, grid-edge, underserved, low-income), and current program rates. Run this before the sales conversation — knowing the customer's specific dollar figure is one of the strongest tools you have.
6	Does it matter whether a customer enrolls through Tesla's Virtual Power Plant or directly?	Yes, and it's worth understanding the difference — including what each path costs the customer. Click Here The gross ESS program rate is $300/kW for standard customers regardless of enrollment path. When a customer enrolls through Tesla's VPP, Tesla retains 20% of the program incentive as a fee for administering the program — handling automated dispatch, reporting performance data to CT Green Bank, and managing the enrollment process on the customer's behalf. The customer nets $240/kW. In exchange for that 20%, the customer gets a simpler experience: enrollment happens in a few taps through the Tesla app, and Tesla manages all the back-end program administration automatically. If a customer enrolls directly — bypassing Tesla as the aggregator — they receive the full $300/kW with no deduction, but the enrollment process requires a bit more paperwork: the installer submits the application to CT Green Bank on the customer's behalf as part of the M1 process. For a 2 × Powerwall 3 system, the difference between the two paths is roughly $432/year. The pricing example in this document uses the $240/kW net rate, reflecting Tesla VPP enrollment. Both paths are available, and neither is wrong — it comes down to whether the customer values the simplicity of Tesla's managed enrollment or prefers to keep the full incentive through direct enrollment.
7	How are low-income customers defined, and how do we verify eligibility?	A low-income customer is one whose household income is below 60% of the *state median income*. Customers in this category qualify for a higher enrollment incentive. Installers who want to help a customer claim the low-income rate must complete the program's income verification process and execute the Low-Income Affidavit before submitting the application. Details are on the CT ESS income verification page.
8	How are "underserved communities" defined?	Underserved communities are economically distressed municipalities as designated by the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD). The current list is built into the CT ESS incentive calculator — if a customer's address falls in one of these municipalities, the calculator will reflect the higher applicable rates automatically.
9	Can a customer participate in both ESS and ConnectedSolutions?	? No. Connecticut's ConnectedSolutions program stopped accepting new enrollments on December 2, 2023. ESS is the active program for new battery enrollments in CT.
10	Is the CT ESS program available everywhere in Connecticut?	No. The program is available only to customers served by Eversource or United Illuminating (UI). Customers served by a municipal utility — such as Groton Utilities, Norwalk Third Taxing District, or Bozrah Light and Power — are not eligible. Before you invest time quoting an ESS-enabled system, confirm that the customer's utility is Eversource or UI. You can find this on their electric bill.
11.	Where does the 7.2 kW average dispatch figure come from?	Tesla publishes a benchmark of 3.6 kW average contribution per Powerwall 3 on their CT ESS support page (tesla.com/support/energy/virtual-power-plant/ess-ct). Their assumptions are a 20% backup reserve setting and an average 3-hour event duration. For a 2 × Powerwall 3 system, that's 3.6 × 2 = 7.2 kW. This figure is independently supported by Enphase, who confirmed an equivalent average dispatch figure of 7.1 kW for a comparable 10 kW system. More Info It's worth noting that 7.2 kW is a benchmark estimate, not a program-guaranteed figure. Actual performance will vary based on the customer's backup reserve setting, event duration, and the number of events called in a given season. We use it because it's the most credible manufacturer-published reference point available for estimating incentive value in the sales conversation — and we believe it represents a conservative floor rather than a ceiling.
12.	What is a grid dispatch event?	A grid dispatch event is a period when demand on Connecticut's electric grid spikes and the grid operator calls on enrolled battery systems to help by sending stored energy back to the grid. More Info These events typically happen on the hottest summer afternoons or the coldest winter days — the times when electricity demand is highest and the grid is under the most strain. For context on what to expect: enrolled systems typically see 30–60 summer dispatch events per year and a smaller number of winter events. Events generally occur between noon and 9 PM and last up to 3 hours. Customers are notified in advance through the Tesla app (or their manufacturer's equivalent), and can opt out of any individual event if needed — though opting out will reduce their performance incentive for that season. The performance incentive is calculated based on the battery's average contribution across all events in a season, which is why the 7.2 kW average dispatch figure — rather than the battery's full 10 kW nameplate output — is the right number to use when estimating incentive value.

Key resources:

CT ESS Incentive Calculator — run this before every sales conversation to get a specific dollar figure for your customer's system and eligibility category

CT Green Bank Grid Edge Map — check whether your customer's address qualifies for the higher grid-edge enrollment incentive

CT Program Contractor FAQ — CT Green Bank's own answers to common contractor questions about the program

CT Green Bank Customer Enrollment Platform — where you submit enrollment applications and receive your ROC and COE

Eligible equipment list — confirm that the battery product you're quoting is currently approved under the program before you sell

Contractor application — apply to become an eligible CT ESS contractor with CT Green Bank

Low-income verification — process and affidavit for verifying low-income customer eligibility and claiming the higher incentive rate

Tesla ESS CT — Tesla's CT ESS program support page, including VPP enrollment details and Powerwall performance benchmarks

Enphase CT — Enphase's CT ESS enrollment and grid services information for IQ Battery systems

SolarEdge CT — SolarEdge's CT ESS program information for Energy Bank systems

If you’re an Authorized Install Partner representative, please reach out to your Relationship Manager or LightReach Team to request pricing and begin onboarding.