Delaware / Local permit guide
New Castle County Solar Permit Guide
Your local requirements. The official sources. A clearer next step.
- Permit authority
- New Castle County Department of Land UseSource linked
- Electric utility
- Delmarva Power (an Exelon company)Source linked
- Local pathway
- Delmarva Power Level 1 Interconnection (inverter-based, 10kW AC nameplate capacity or less)Project-specific eligibility conditions apply.
- Review time
- Not yet verified.
New Castle County ·
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Your permit path,
at a glance.
This shows what GridPermit has verified for New Castle County. It does not show the status of a specific project.
01 / Know your path
Two approvals.
One project.
A local permit and utility permission to operate are different approvals. Check the local sequence and requirements below.
How to read this guide
GridPermit collects Delaware residential solar and permitting facts directly from official sources (city, county, and state government sites, utilities, and public utilities commissions) and shows only what we can verify, with a confidence score and a link to where it came from. Nothing here is estimated or inferred beyond what's stated below. See our methodology for the rules this page follows.
Battery/solar incentive program on record
No battery/storage incentive program is on record for this locality.
02 / Prepare your application
What you need.
Sources & confidence
Permit fees
Delmarva Power's own Level 1 interconnection application fee is explicitly 'No fee' (recorded in interconnection_url notes instead, since it is a utility fee, not a building permit fee). Some supporting official material could not be independently confirmed from the full source in GridPermit's latest review. Verify the current requirement with the authority before relying on it.
Not yet verified.
Rebates on record
Rebates on record
Green Energy Program (GEP) — Residential Photovoltaic Grant
Statewide Delaware rebate open only to Delmarva Power and Light (DPL) customers, funded via a public benefits fund charge ($0.000356/kWh consumed): $0.80/watt for residential PV systems up to 50,000 watts, maximum grant $10,000, per DNREC's own rate table effective July 1, 2026. No grant may exceed 50% of total project cost, and total project cost must be $6.00/watt or less to qualify (cost cap). A Solar Shade Analysis with a Total Solar Resource Fraction (TSRF) of 70% or greater is required. Applications must be submitted within 12 months of installation completion. Applicants must sign over their Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs) to the Delaware Sustainable Energy Utility as part of the grant application. Delaware's other utilities (Delaware Electric Cooperative, Delaware Municipal Electric Corporation) run separate, similar programs not detailed here since this record is scoped to Delmarva territory.
Status on file: active. Verify current status before relying on this.
Sources & confidence
Utility and generation supplier
Utility
Delmarva Power (an Exelon company)
Directly confirmed via Delmarva Power's own site as Delaware's only investor-owned electric utility. New Castle County also contains areas served by the Delaware Electric Cooperative and by municipal utilities (e.g. the City of Newark's own municipal electric utility) — this record covers unincorporated New Castle County / the County's own permitting authority, which is Delmarva Power territory, not those exceptions.
Sources & confidence
Generation supplier
Delmarva Power (an Exelon company) (utility)
Some supporting official material could not be independently confirmed from the full source in GridPermit's latest review. Verify the current requirement with the authority before relying on it.
Sources & confidence
Interconnection
For Level 1 (10kW AC inverter nameplate capacity or less — the typical residential rooftop solar case), the interconnection application fee is explicitly stated as 'No fee.' This is a statewide, utility-wide fact applicable to every Delmarva Power-territory Delaware locality, not county-specific. Delmarva's page says the complete interconnection process (apply, pay the application fee, install the system, inspection by the Delaware Real Estate Commission (DREC), and net-capable meter installation) takes approximately 77 business days. That is the utility's full process, including the installation, not a County permit review time. Some supporting official material could not be independently confirmed from the full source in GridPermit's latest review. Verify the current requirement with the authority before relying on it.
Inspection steps
- Within five days of starting work under a Delaware Homeowners electrical permit, contact one of the Delaware-licensed Inspection Agencies to have the electrical work inspected
- Before installing drywall, contact a Delaware-licensed Inspection Agency for a 'rough-in' inspection
New Castle County itself does not permit or inspect electrical work — per the County's own site, 'State of Delaware licensed electricians are required to have their electrical work inspected by a licensed Inspection Agency,' a state-level (not county-level) system. Some supporting official material could not be independently confirmed from the full source in GridPermit's latest review. Verify the current requirement with the authority before relying on it.
Sources & confidence
Eligibility constraints
- Property types: residential
- Max system size (AC): 10 kW
- Max system size (DC): Not yet verified.
- Max thermal capacity: Not yet verified.
- Program/pathway: Delmarva Power Level 1 Interconnection (inverter-based, 10kW AC nameplate capacity or less)
- Other conditions:
- Level 1 is for lab-certified inverter-based small generator facilities of 10kW AC or less — the typical single-family residential rooftop solar case
- Larger or non-inverter-based systems require a higher interconnection level (2, 3, or 4) with an associated application fee
Sources & confidence
Official contacts
Official contacts
- New Castle County Department of Land Use, Permits & Inspections, official website
Need a solar installer who handles permits in New Castle County?
EnergySage is an independent solar marketplace where you can request property-specific pricing from installers familiar with local permitting.
Compare quotes from solar installers →You'll continue on EnergySage's website. GridPermit links to EnergySage as an independent third-party resource. This link is not currently tracked for compensation.
Official sources
Official sources
- Connecting Your System to the Grid, Delmarva Power (an Exelon company) (utility). Accessed 2026-10-04.
- Permits & Inspections, New Castle County, Delaware (government). Accessed 2026-08-12.
- Green Energy Program Incentives (rate sheet, effective July 1, 2026), Delaware DNREC, Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy (program_administrator). Accessed 2026-08-13.
- Homeowner Electrical Permit, Delaware Division of Professional Regulation (government). Accessed 2026-08-14.
- Get a Permit — eApply / ePlans, New Castle County (government). Accessed 2026-10-08.
Frequently Asked Questions
What utility serves solar customers in New Castle County, Delaware?
Delmarva Power (an Exelon company) is the interconnection and distribution utility for New Castle County. The same utility is also listed as the default electricity generation supplier.
What documents are required for a solar permit in New Castle County?
Commonly required documents include: New Castle County permit application submitted through eApply; Required plans and supporting permit documents uploaded through ePlans; Separate Delaware electrical permit / licensed inspection-agency documentation.
Who do I contact about solar permits in New Castle County?
New Castle County Department of Land Use, Permits & Inspections.