Residential New Construction

The new program will not provide incentives for ENERGY STAR certified homes unless they also meet HERO requirements. Certain HERO requirements do contribute to or exceed the requirements for ENERGY STAR certification. (Please consult a HERS rater for details.)

Note that homes built to ENERGY STAR standards after December 2001 may qualify for Duke Energy Progress' Residential Energy Conservation Discount. This discount is applied to the qualifying homeowner’s monthly electric bill. Homeowners or builders must provide a form certifying that the home has met the Department of Energy/Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR Labeled Home Certification. These documents can be faxed to 919.546.7381 or e-mailed to ECDiscount@duke-energy.com. For complete requirements, refer to the Residential Service Energy Conservation Discount Rider.

The HERO code Performance Path requires an energy cost analysis, provided by a certified RESNET® HERS rater to ensure the home’s energy usage is at least as low as the same home built to the Prescriptive Path. By working with a certified RESNET HERS rater, the home is given a score based on energy performance, which determines your rebate incentive level. Find a list of program approved HERS raters here.

Builders who meet or exceed the 2012 HERO code will have the opportunity to participate in a Heating and Cooling Energy Usage Limited Guarantee as a means of marketing the home’s improved energy efficiency to prospective buyers. (Homes in S.C. must be built to N.C. HERO standards.) Each home in the program must receive a HERS Index Score verified by a certified HERS rater and will be modeled using REMrate™ software to calculate the heating and cooling energy usage that home should use during an average weather year. The home will then be assigned a maximum annual heating and cooling energy usage amount and an estimated annual heating and cooling cost to help homeowners realize the value of the home and better understand its true cost of ownership.

The guarantee is only applicable to the initial homeowner and will apply for three years from registration. Should a customer’s heating and cooling energy usage exceed the stated guarantee after 12 months following the completion of the first billing cycle, and if all conditions of the guarantee have been met, the customer would be eligible to receive a payment for the amount that exceeds that guarantee. The Limited Guarantee is administered by a third party (ICF International) in collaboration with Duke Energy Progress.

Complete details on the Limited Guarantee are available here.

Builders can choose to participate in one of two incentive options:

1. The equipment option: offers incentives of up to $350 for installing qualified heat pump water heaters ($350), up to $250 for installing high-efficiency air source heat pump and central air conditioning HVAC systems that are up to SEER 15 or up to $300 for installing high-efficiency air source heat pump and central air conditioning HVAC systems that are SEER 15 or Higher ($300).

2. The whole-house option: gives generous incentives of up to $9,000 to builders and developers who build to or exceed the 2012 N.C. Energy Conservation Code's High Efficiency Residential Option (HERO). Participating homes in S.C. must be built to N.C. HERO standards. In addition, it provides builders with an optional three-year Heating and Cooling Energy Usage Limited Guarantee that they can market and extend to homebuyers. The Limited Guarantee is administered by a third party in collaboration with Duke Energy Progress.

• See a detailed incentive structure here.

Program applications can include measures completed in 2015 as long as builders meet all program requirements and comply with the following dates:

• For Equipment Incentives, builders must provide an equipment installation invoice dated after October 1, 2015. 
• For Whole-House Incentives, builders must provide a HERS certificate dated after October 1, 2015.

Beginning January 1, 2012, the North Carolina Building Code Council launched the High Efficiency Residential Option (HERO), which is detailed in Appendix 4 of the 2012 N.C. Energy Conservation Code. 

This voluntary “stretch” code is comprised of measures that achieve 15 to 20% better energy efficiency than minimum state code requirements. The HERO code includes the most cost-effective measures to achieve this level of efficiency and can be met by following either a specific Prescriptive Path or a more flexible Performance Path. The Performance Path requires an energy cost analysis, provided by a HERS rater and verified by a design professional, to ensure the home’s energy usage is at least as low as the same home built to the Prescriptive Path.

Similar to its function in the ENERGY STAR® for New Homes Program, the Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index is incorporated into the whole-house incentive levels of Duke Energy Progress' new program.  

The HERS Index is a scale for which home energy is measured and communicated. The lower the HERS score, the lower the expected energy usage. By working with a certified RESNET® Home Energy Rater, the home is given a score based on energy performance, which determines the rebate incentive level. A HERS Index is also an effective tool for demonstrating the efficiency of the home to buyers and can be leveraged in communicating the true cost of ownership.

For more information about the HERS Index, visit www.resnet.us/hers-index.

For more information or questions regarding Duke Energy Progress' Residential New Construction Program, please email rncnewhomes@icfi.com or call toll free 844.385.3762*.

*Please note that the number listed above is only for the Duke Energy Progress Residential New Construction Program. To apply for new service, customers please call 800.452.2777; builders call 800.636.0581.