Lansing Solar Permit Guide
Lansing Board of Water & Light (BWL) territory · Ingham County
Overview
GridPermit collects Michigan 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.
Permit fees
Not yet verified.
Rebates
BWL Solar Rebate
Rebate for customer-owned residential solar systems. Required documentation: signed rebate application, invoice/proof of purchase, installation date, and equipment specification sheets; processing takes up to 4 weeks.
Status on file: active. Verify current status before relying on this.
Utility and generation supplier
Utility
Lansing Board of Water & Light (BWL)
Generation supplier
Lansing Board of Water & Light (BWL) (utility)
BWL is a municipally-owned utility that is itself the generation and distribution utility for Lansing; no separate generation supplier or CCA applies.
Interconnection
https://www.lbwl.com/customers/save-money-energy/install-my-own-solar
Per BWL's own page, customers must contact BWL's distributed generation team before purchasing equipment. Before construction, the contractor must submit an Interconnection Application and comply with BWL's Rules and Regulations; an interconnection fee applies (specific dollar amount not stated on the page fetched this session). BWL compensates excess exported solar energy at a 'Solar Outflow Credit' of $0.075/kWh, itself composed of an energy cost average ($0.050/kWh), a capacity credit ($0.012/kWh), and a renewable energy credit ($0.013/kWh) — a distinct rate-design approach from DTE's Rider 18 program.
Required documents
- Building Permit Application or Application for Plan Review, plus construction documents and the required fee (required when: always)
Inspection steps
- Applicant contacts BWL with a request for information; BWL provides the 'Generator Interconnection Application'
- BWL receives the Interconnection Application, supporting data, and a $100 interconnection application fee
- BWL acknowledges receipt within 5 business days
- BWL reviews the application data and confirms the inverter meets IEEE Std. 1547 requirements
- If approved, the project design is approved for construction; the customer must also have applied for a City of Lansing electrical permit
- BWL and the local Electrical Inspector approve the completed installation
- BWL and the customer execute the Generator Interconnection Agreement and contract for parallel operation, and BWL provides Net Metering program information/application
Per BWL's own 'BWL Interconnection Process' flowchart document, specifically scoped to 'Customer Owned Renewable Energy Generators Inverter-Type Projects 20kW or Less' — i.e. the residential-scale process, not BWL's separate large-generator/transmission-level interconnection procedure (BWL Procedural Guideline PG-02-0002), which was also reviewed this session but found to be out of scope for a typical residential rooftop system. The $100 fee shown here is a BWL utility interconnection fee, not a City of Lansing building-permit fee — see permit_fees for the (unconfirmed) City fee.
Eligibility constraints
- Property types: residential
- Max system size (AC): Not yet verified.
- Max system size (DC): Not yet verified.
- Max thermal capacity: Not yet verified.
- Program/pathway: Not yet verified.
- Other conditions:
- BWL's own page recommends contacting the utility's distributed generation team before purchasing equipment to discuss appropriate system sizing
Official contacts
- BWL Distributed Generation team, phone: 517-702-6076, email: distributedgeneration@lbwl.com, official website
Need a solar installer who handles permits in Lansing?
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 has a partner relationship with EnergySage; this link is not currently tracked, and whether the partnership results in compensation to GridPermit has not yet been confirmed.
Sources
- Building Safety, City of Lansing, MI (government). Accessed 2026-08-13.
- Install My Own Solar, Lansing Board of Water & Light (utility). Accessed 2026-08-13.
- BWL Interconnection Process (Customer Owned Renewable Energy Generators, Inverter-Type Projects 20kW or Less), Lansing Board of Water & Light (utility). Accessed 2026-08-14.
Frequently Asked Questions
What utility serves solar customers in Lansing, Michigan?
Lansing Board of Water & Light (BWL) is the interconnection and distribution utility for Lansing. The default electricity generation supplier is Lansing Board of Water & Light (BWL), a utility, separate from Lansing Board of Water & Light (BWL).
What documents are required for a solar permit in Lansing?
Commonly required documents include: Building Permit Application or Application for Plan Review, plus construction documents and the required fee.
Who do I contact about solar permits in Lansing?
BWL Distributed Generation team, phone 517-702-6076, email distributedgeneration@lbwl.com.