Every Honey Bee Solar engagement begins with a full custom analysis delivered within 24 hours. Here's exactly what's inside — section by section — so you know what you're reviewing before you commit to anything.
🏢 Get a Commercial QuoteThe headline numbers — everything you need to understand the financial case for solar before reading a single chart.
The top of your report leads with four headline KPIs pulled directly from your data: your current annual hydro bill, your projected annual saving, the fastest payback period across all battery options, and the best 25-year net benefit. These aren't estimates — they're calculated from your actual interval consumption data and current utility rates.
The Annual Saving figure — this is real dollars back in your pocket starting in Year 1. The Fastest Payback figure represents the battery option that recovers your investment most quickly, not necessarily the one with the best long-term return.
Your report compares up to five battery configurations side by side — from a base storage option through to a full oversized system that eliminates winter bills entirely. Each option is evaluated on gross cost, Investment Tax Credit (ITC), HST reclaim, net system cost, annual saving, simple payback, 25-year savings, 25-year net benefit, and ROI.
The highlighted "Recommended" column — this is the option that delivers the best balance of payback speed and 25-year ROI based on your specific usage profile. It's a recommendation, not a requirement.
Below the KPIs, your report shows the common system specification that applies to all battery options: solar array size (number of panels and wattage), inverter model, DC capacity, annual production estimate, annual usage, solar offset percentage, rate plan, and your local distribution company (LDC). These specifications are consistent regardless of which battery option you choose.
Your Solar Offset percentage — this tells you how much of your total annual consumption is covered by your solar array's production. A 72% offset means solar covers 72 cents of every dollar of electricity you use.
Charts and tables that show you how each battery configuration performs — and what your monthly bills actually look like after solar.
Three bar charts lay out the trade-offs between every battery option at a glance. The first shows net system cost by option — what you actually pay after ITC and HST reclaim. The second shows annual saving versus your current Time-of-Use (TOU) bill baseline — how much each configuration saves per year. The third shows escalated payback period — how long each option takes to pay for itself, accounting for rate increases over time.
The gap between the "Annual Saving" chart and the "Payback Period" chart. A larger battery saves more per year but costs more upfront — these charts show you whether that premium is worth it for your situation.
A 12-month table shows your current TOU bill, your projected Solar+Battery bill, and your monthly saving for each month of the year — based on the recommended battery configuration. Summer months (May–September) typically show the largest savings as solar production peaks. Winter months (November–February) depend heavily on battery size.
Your winter months — November through February. These are the months where solar production drops and your battery's stored credits are doing the heavy lifting. A smaller battery will show higher bills in these months; a larger battery can bring them down to the minimum floor.
The section that answers the question most clients ask first: how big does my battery need to be to eliminate my winter bills?
This table maps your monthly net bill for every battery configuration across all 12 months of the year. Red cells indicate months where your banked solar credits don't fully cover your consumption — you still owe something above the minimum fixed charges. Green cells ($68 in the sample) indicate months where credits cover everything and you're down to the minimum floor. The goal is to find the battery size that turns all your winter red cells green.
The row where all cells turn green — that's the breakeven battery size. In the sample report, that's the 2× Option B configuration at 96 kWh usable storage. Everything above that size costs more but saves no additional bills.
For each battery configuration that doesn't fully eliminate winter bills, the report calculates the exact annual "excess cost" — the dollar amount above the minimum bill floor that each option leaves on the table. This tells you the precise financial value of upgrading to the next battery size, so you can make a rational decision about whether the premium is justified.
Compare the Winter Excess Cost for each option against the additional upfront cost of upgrading. If Option A has $1,288/yr above floor and the upgrade to Option B costs $16,746 more — dividing the extra cost by the extra saving tells you the exact payback on that upgrade decision alone.
The long-term picture — cumulative returns, head-to-head comparisons, and the exact year your investment crosses into profit.
A multi-line chart plots the cumulative net benefit of every battery configuration over 25 years. Each line starts negative (representing your initial investment) and climbs as annual savings accumulate. The point where each line crosses zero is your payback year. The gap between lines at Year 25 shows the long-term ROI difference between configurations. Dashed vertical lines mark each option's exact payback year.
The model uses 3% annual rate escalation (your hydro bill grows over time, making your savings grow too) and 0.5% annual panel degradation.
The Year 25 endpoint for each line — this is your 25-year net benefit. A configuration with a slower payback might still deliver a higher 25-year net if its annual savings are larger. This chart shows you which trade-off is right for your priorities.
For the two most closely matched configurations, the report provides a direct head-to-head comparison table covering battery capacity, usable storage, dispatch rate, gross system cost, effective net cost (after Capital Cost Allowance (CCA) depreciation), annual savings, annual net bill, payback period, 25-year net benefit, and ROI. The written analysis below the table explains exactly why one configuration is recommended over the other — not just the numbers, but the reasoning.
The Effective Net Cost row — this is your real out-of-pocket after ITC credit, HST reclaim, and CCA depreciation tax savings. This is the number the payback calculation should be based on, not the gross cost.
For the recommended configuration, the report provides a year-by-year cashflow table from Year 1 through Year 25, showing annual saving (growing with rate escalation), cumulative total savings, and net position (cumulative savings minus initial investment). The payback year is clearly marked — the first year where your net position turns positive.
The section that applies to corporate entities — and often the one that most significantly changes the investment math.
CRA's Capital Cost Allowance Class 43.1 covers clean energy generation equipment — including solar PV systems, battery storage, and inverters. Eligible corporate entities can depreciate the full system cost at 30% declining balance, with a 55% first-year CCA rate available under the Accelerated Investment Incentive (AII) rules current through 2026–27.
The tax savings are calculated at the combined federal-provincial corporate rate of 26.5% (15% federal + 11.5% Ontario). The report shows each year's CCA deduction and the resulting tax saving — year by year for 25 years.
This section applies to commercial, condo corporation, and farm clients operating through a registered corporate entity. It does not apply to residential homeowners. If you are not certain of your eligibility, your accountant or tax advisor can confirm.
The section concludes with a true net investment summary that layers every available tax benefit on top of each other: starting from the gross system cost including HST, subtracting HST reclaim (for registered corporate clients), subtracting the Federal ITC (30% of pre-tax cost), arriving at Net Cost After ITC + HST — and then subtracting the NPV of 25 years of CCA tax savings discounted at 5% to arrive at your Effective Net Investment.
The Effective Net Investment at the bottom of the table — in the sample report this reduces a $221,997 gross system cost to an effective investment of approximately $105,000. This is the number that matters for your ROI and payback calculations.
The complete technical and financial foundation behind every number in your report — plus a fully itemized installation quote.
Every figure in the report is built on a documented set of assumptions. The assumptions page lists rate escalation, panel degradation, battery efficiency, dispatch window, charge window, ITC rate, HST reclaim basis, analysis period, on-peak rate, Ultra-Low Overnight (ULO) rate, minimum monthly bill, export credit scope, credit expiry rules, and CCA classification — all in one place.
The methodology explains that the analysis is based on an 8,760-hour hourly simulation using your actual consumption data and satellite irradiance data for your specific Ontario location. It details how the ULO rate structure works, how battery dispatch and overnight charging are modelled, and how export credits accumulate and expire under Ontario Net Metering (O. Reg. 541/05).
Most solar quotes are based on rule-of-thumb estimates. Ours are based on 8,760 individual hourly calculations. The assumptions page is your right to audit every number in the report — and we welcome the scrutiny.
The final page is a formal installation quote for the recommended configuration, broken into three sections: Equipment & Materials (solar panels, inverter, battery, racking, balance of system, monitoring), Labour & Services (installation crew, battery configuration, engineering and permits, shipping), and for systems over 12kW, Regulatory & Engineering Costs (electrical engineering report, Connection Impact Assessment, utility application and connection fee, ESA inspection).
The Pricing Summary shows your subtotal before tax, HST, total project cost, ITC credit deduction, HST reclaim deduction, Net Client Investment, and Effective Net Cost after CCA depreciation. The quote is valid for 30 days and is signed by an authorized Honey Bee Solar representative.
The NET CLIENT INVESTMENT line — this is what you pay after all government incentives, before accounting for CCA depreciation tax savings. The Effective Net Cost below it accounts for the NPV of CCA savings and represents your true long-term cost of the system.
Download the sample report to see the full format — then request your own custom analysis.
The sample report presented on this page is provided for illustrative and informational purposes only and does not constitute a representation of actual system performance, financial returns, or installation costs. Figures, projections, system specifications, and pricing shown are derived from sample data and are intended solely to demonstrate the structure and analytical scope of a Honey Bee Solar ROI Analysis. Actual results will vary based on individual site conditions, energy consumption profiles, prevailing utility rates, equipment availability, and applicable regulations at the time of engagement. This document does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. All financial projections are estimates only. Corporate ITC eligibility and HST reclaim applicability depend on the client's entity structure and registration status. Consult a qualified financial advisor prior to making any capital investment decisions.
What you just saw is what we deliver for every client — before they commit to anything. Start your free solar quote and we'll have your custom analysis back to you within 24 hours.