Some rural Minnesota businesses embrace solar to control energy costs

Jane Anderson could’ve bought a new pickup, but she had another bright idea for what to buy with that money — 72 solar panels that could make enough electricity to offset her home and business power needs.Anderson, owner of The Groom Room dog boarding and grooming business east of Hawley, said she’s always been curious about solar but assumed it was unaffordable.Glenz said customers can expect to pay about $75,000 to get a solar array like the one Anderson now has. But that number quickly starts to drop — in her case, to around $30,000 — when tax and energy savings enter the picture.She said she’ll get an energy tax credit of 30 percent of her cost for five years, bringing her out-of-pocket costs down, and she can depreciate the solar panels as business equipment.