Audi is offering 3,000 of its E-Tron electric SUV buyers a complimentary 10-year subscription to solar power.
Under a deal with the clean-energy provider Acadia announced yesterday, owners will save some money and help with solar adoption.
Audi anticipates the amount saved to be one full E-Tron charge each month per household—offsetting the cost of up to 2,400 miles per year.
Through participating utility providers, Arcadia gives those who subscribe a “prorated share of savings in the form of a credit on their utility bills.” The subscription is software-based and will transfer if the E-Tron owner moves. Simply put, you give Arcadia your account information, and the company takes the solar savings out and bills you instead.
Audi and Arcadia partner - solar installation
In all, Audi’s collaboration with Arcadia adds up to about 29 gigawatt-hours of solar electricity generation. That offsets about 22,000 tons of CO2, or 2.3 million gallons of gas.
As Audi points out, subscriptions to solar projects “demonstrate demand for solar power and increase awareness nationwide.”
The program might be helpful in getting dealerships thinking about local green-energy options for shoppers. And for electric-vehicle newbies, the program is a nice complement to the company’s charger-installation services handled by Amazon.
And if the E-Tron in the U.S. does eventually get the range and efficiency boost given to European versions of the E-Tron, that solar subscription might make even more of a difference.
The program starts February 4 and times out with the 3,000th E-Tron sold after the program start—including new and certified pre-owned vehicles.