Solar + Storage in Ohio: 2026 Tariffs, Costs and Credits

Ohio market insight · Renewables & solar

Updated September 27, 2026Ohio Commercial Energy editorial teamHow we review content Book a free 15-min bill review

The short answer

The 2025–2026 trade and tax changes pulled solar and storage in opposite directions. Solar modules got cheaper after the IEEPA tariffs were struck down in February 2026, but installed commercial system prices still rose because metal tariffs, logistics and new trade cases raised everything around the panel, and new solar projects largely lost the federal credit. Batteries kept a full federal credit for projects starting construction through 2033, subject to foreign-sourcing rules. In Ohio, solar plus storage pencils mainly where a battery can cut demand charges and capacity-tag costs, not where it simply shifts solar output to the evening.

What happened in 2025

Three events in 2025 set up the 2026 cost environment:

The federal tax law (P.L. 119-21, July 4, 2025) limited the solar and wind credit to projects that began construction by July 4, 2026, or are placed in service by December 31, 2027, added prohibited-foreign-entity rules for projects starting after 2025, and kept energy storage eligible at the full rate for construction starting through 2033.
Antidumping and countervailing duty orders on crystalline silicon cells and modules from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam were published on June 24, 2025.
Broad IEEPA "reciprocal" and country tariffs raised the landed cost of imported equipment through most of 2025.

The 2026 trade picture, measure by measure

Measure	Status as of September 2026	What it touches
Section 201 safeguard on solar cells and modules	Expired February 6, 2026	Modules and cells
IEEPA tariffs	Struck down by the Supreme Court February 20, 2026; collection ended February 24	Most imported goods
AD/CVD on Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam	In effect since June 2025	Cells and modules
AD/CVD on India, Indonesia, Laos	Commerce final determinations September 11, 2026 (e.g., dumping margins of 123% for India); ITC injury vote pending	Cells and modules
Section 232 polysilicon action	Proclaimed August 6, 2026; effective December 4, 2026: 15% tariff plus minimum import prices (e.g., $0.38/W for modules, $0.22/W for cells), with country-specific caps	Polysilicon, wafers, cells, modules
Section 232 steel, aluminum and copper	In effect	Racking, conductors, enclosures, switchgear
Section 301 on Chinese goods	Solar cells at 50% since September 2024; lithium-ion non-EV batteries rose to 25% on January 1, 2026	Chinese cells and stationary batteries

The practical effect: module prices fell, but a module price floor arrives in December 2026, and nearly every other component still carries tariff exposure. For broader on-site equipment such as transformers and switchgear, see tariffs on energy equipment; for how utility equipment costs flow into delivery rates, see federal tariffs on grid equipment.

What it did to installed prices

Wood Mackenzie and SEIA's Q2 2026 pricing data show the split clearly:

Commercial solar system price: $1.77 per watt, up 5.6% year over year, the steepest increase of any segment.
Distributed-generation module price: $0.37 per watt, down 16% year over year, which the analysts tied largely to the end of IEEPA tariffs.
Drivers of the increase: Section 232 metal tariffs raising structural and electrical balance-of-system costs, and roughly 15% higher logistics and freight costs.

Those are national averages. Small rooftop jobs, older electrical services and utility interconnection upgrades can put an Ohio quote well above them. Battery pricing is quote-driven; ask for pricing that states the cell origin, because both the Section 301 battery tariff and the federal foreign-entity rules depend on it.

Credits: solar lost its runway, storage kept it

	Solar	Battery storage
Federal credit for a project starting now	Only if placed in service by December 31, 2027	Full rate for construction starting through 2033; 75% in 2034, 50% in 2035, none after
Foreign-entity "material assistance" threshold (construction starting in 2026, per IRS Notice 2026-15)	40%	55%
Threshold trend	Rises 5 points a year	Rises 5 points a year

Storage paired with a new solar array can still qualify on its own even when the solar does not. The sourcing test is the practical hurdle: a battery built on Chinese cells may struggle to meet the 55% non-foreign threshold. Confirm eligibility with a tax adviser before relying on any credit.

When solar plus storage still pencils in Ohio

Ohio's net metering credits exports at the energy component of the standard service offer, and most business supply is not priced by time of use, so storing midday solar for evening use earns relatively little. Batteries earn their keep in Ohio from three other sources:

Capacity tag (PLC) reduction. Capacity cost is set by your load during PJM's summer peak hours. At the 2026/27 price of $329.17/MW-day, each kW of tag costs about $120 a year; 2027/28 ($333.44) and 2028/29 ($325.00) are similar.
Demand charges. A battery can clip the monthly peak that sets your $/kW charge, which solar alone rarely does reliably.
Resilience and demand response. Backup for critical loads, and possible PJM demand response payments if the battery is enrolled through a curtailment service provider.

Illustrative example (assumptions stated): a battery dispatched in time to cut a site's capacity tag by 200 kW saves about 200 × $120.15 ≈ $24,000 a year at the 2026/27 price, but only if it discharges during the actual PJM peak hours and your supply contract passes your tag through (or you re-price at renewal). Demand-charge savings come on top and depend on your tariff. See the capacity tag playbook and tactics for peak demand charges.

Solar plus storage is most likely to work for sites with high, predictable afternoon peaks, meaningful demand charges, a need for backup power and enough tax appetite (or a third-party owner) to use the storage credit.

Buy now or wait?

If construction already began before July 4, 2026, keep the project moving and document continuous progress; the solar credit depends on it.
If you are starting fresh, model solar without the credit, and model storage with the credit only if the vendor can document foreign-entity compliance.
Watch December 4, 2026. The polysilicon minimum import prices may lift module prices for imports; ask whether quotes are firm or subject to tariff pass-through.
Ask for trade clauses in writing. Check whether the contract lets the installer pass through new duties; if it does, negotiate a cap or a fixed price.

For the full payback method, see the commercial solar ROI model; for storage use cases and operating practices, see energy storage solutions and storage best practices.

FAQ

Did the end of the Section 201 solar tariff lower commercial solar prices?

Module prices fell in 2026, largely because IEEPA tariffs ended, but installed commercial system prices still rose about 5.6% year over year in Q2 2026 because racking, electrical equipment and freight got more expensive.

Is there still a federal tax credit for commercial batteries?

Yes. Energy storage keeps the full credit for projects that begin construction through 2033, phasing down after that, but projects starting in 2026 must meet a 55% non-foreign material assistance threshold. Confirm with a tax adviser.

What does a battery save an Ohio business?

Mostly capacity-tag and demand-charge costs. Each kW of capacity tag avoided is worth roughly $120 a year at 2026/27 PJM prices, if the battery runs during the actual summer peak hours and your contract passes the tag through.

Should I wait for tariffs to settle before buying solar?

Waiting does not recover the solar credit, and the December 2026 polysilicon price floors may raise module costs. Decide on today's quote with firm pricing, and model it without the solar credit unless the project can be in service by the end of 2027.