Top Tier — Pennsylvania Battery Sales Reference

Duquesne Light · Pittsburgh & Allegheny County

Sales reference for reps working Duquesne Light territory. This is the deep reference — how to sell it up top, full utility detail below. Duquesne Light serves Pittsburgh and Allegheny/Beaver counties — the highest all-in rates among our Pennsylvania territories, the most dramatic recent outage in the state (the April 2025 windstorm knocked out over 325,000 Duquesne customers — more than half their base — with restoration running about nine days), and a newly-expanded time-of-use option whose peak-to-overnight spread is exactly the shape a battery exploits. Net metering is fully intact — Duquesne has filed nothing to change it. The battery here is a rate hedge, a backup, a takeover, and — uniquely in Pennsylvania — a time-of-use play worth modeling.

What kind of market this is

Duquesne is a protected 1:1 net-metering market with the state's most dramatic recent outage, high and rising rates, and a TOU option built for batteries. Four defining facts:

1. Net metering is intact — Duquesne has filed nothing. Duquesne residential solar customers get full retail 1:1 net metering (52 Pa. Code §75.13), and unlike PPL and FirstEnergy, Duquesne sat out the repricing wave entirely — no filing, no proceeding. (And even those other utilities' filings target 100 kW+ generators, not homes.) Clean reassurance.
2. Rates are high and the next case is coming. Duquesne's all-in residential rate is roughly 22.6¢/kWh — the highest among our Pennsylvania territories — after the November 2024 rate case (+$85.1M, ~4% residential). And the "stay-out" period from that case expired March 20, 2026, which means the next rate case can land at any time.
3. The April 2025 windstorm is the most dramatic outage anchor in the state. On April 29, 2025, a windstorm knocked out over 325,000 Duquesne customers — more than half the company's entire base — with at least three deaths and restoration running about nine days. Anyone in Pittsburgh remembers it. Grid-tied solar shut off with the grid.
4. The TOU option is built for batteries. Duquesne's Rider 8 time-of-use — newly expanded to all smart-meter residential customers — prices peak power (3–9 PM) at ~31.8¢ and overnight power at ~4.3¢. A seven-to-one spread between peak and overnight is exactly the shape a battery exploits: store cheap, use at peak. Our tool can't model Duquesne TOU precisely yet, so this is an angle worth modeling, not a promised number.

Your lead is the April 2025 windstorm + the high-and-rising rates. Half of Pittsburgh losing power for the better part of a week is the single most vivid resilience anchor we have anywhere; the 22.6¢ all-in and the expired stay-out make the hedge concrete. The TOU spread is the bonus angle. The net-metering story is pure reassurance — Duquesne filed nothing. There's no cliff; don't sell one.

Default configuration: backup-capable is the strong default here — the April 2025 event makes the case by itself.

• Backup-capable: $18,500 cash / $23,942 financed / ~$228/mo
• Self-consumption-only: $17,000 cash / $22,068 financed / ~$210/mo

Confirm pricing and configuration in the tool before quoting.

PART A — The Pitch (Problem → Solution → Urgency → Close)

The spine is multiple beats per section: customer headline + statement + rep layer (+ objection where noted). Beats marked (BACKUP ONLY) render only for backup config; beats with Self-consumption:/Backup: branches swap the customer line by config.

The Problem

You're paying some of the highest rates in Pennsylvania — and the next increase can land any time. Duquesne's all-in rate is around 22.6 cents — the highest of any territory we serve in this state — after the 2024 rate case. And the protection period from that case expired in March, which means the next rate case can be filed whenever Duquesne chooses. Your solar offsets your usage — but every kilowatt-hour you still buy rides that rate.

Rep layer: The Duquesne opener — high-and-rising: PTC ~14.14¢ supply (resets June 1/Dec 1), customer charge $13/mo, distribution ~8.25¢/kWh, all-in ~22.6¢ (the highest among our PA territories); rate case R-2024-3046523 approved Nov 7, 2024 (+$85.1M, ~+4% residential, $130.67→$135.88); the stay-out expired March 20, 2026 — the next case can land any time. Objection — "My solar covers my bill." It offsets usage; it doesn't shield the price of what you still buy, and it's worth nothing in an outage — ask anyone here about last April.

Your system is orphaned. Whoever installed your solar is likely gone, merged, or unreachable — especially after so many installers folded when the federal tax credit expired at the end of 2025. If something goes wrong, there's no one accountable. You own the system and the risk.

Rep layer: Standard orphaned-system beat. Ask who installed it and whether they'd answer a service call. Objection — "My installer's still around." Would they answer within a week, and cover it?

Your inverter is on the clock. Your inverter is several years old. When it fails out of warranty, that's about $3,500 to $5,000 out of pocket — and your system produces nothing until it's replaced, typically 4 to 8 weeks.

Rep layer: Standard inverter beat. SolarEdge ~12-yr warranty, real failure 8–15 yrs; Enphase 25-yr, real issues 10–20. Objection — "Still under warranty." Good — until it isn't, and then it's $3,500–5,000.

(BACKUP ONLY) No protection when the grid goes down — and Pittsburgh just lived that for nine days. Your solar shuts off during an outage — anti-islanding, a safety cutoff. In April 2025, more than half of Duquesne's customers lost power, and restoration ran about nine days. A battery keeps your critical systems running — and with sun, it recharges through a multi-day outage.

Rep layer: Renders ONLY for backup config. Duquesne context: the April 29, 2025 windstorm — 325,000+ out (~54% of the entire customer base), at least 3 deaths, ~9 days to full restoration. Plus the Feb 2022 ice storm and regular western-PA winter events. Objection — "We don't lose power that often." More than half this company's customers were dark last April, some for over a week. This is the strongest resilience anchor in Pennsylvania — use it factually, not exploitatively; people died in that storm.

The Solution

A battery hedges the highest rates in the state — and can play the time-of-use game. Stores your daytime solar and uses it at night instead of buying at Duquesne's rate. And if you opt into Duquesne's time-of-use rider, overnight power costs about 4 cents while peak power costs about 32 — a spread a battery is built to exploit: charge cheap overnight or from solar, discharge through the 3–9 PM peak.

• Self-consumption: "As the supply price steps up every reset, your battery leans on your own stored solar instead of buying more at the higher rate."
• Backup: "Hedges the climb the same way, and keeps your home running when the grid goes down."

Monthly Cost Chart and Net Bill Breakdown render here.

Rep layer: First cure beat. Standard rate: maximize self-supply against ~22.6¢ all-in (1:1 NEM — no export spread). TOU Rider 8 (expanded to ALL smart-meter residential, April 2025): peak 31.76¢ (3–9 PM weekdays) / off-peak 5.85¢ / super-off-peak 4.30¢ (overnight) — a genuine battery arbitrage shape. HONESTY GATE: our tool does not yet model Duquesne TOU precisely — present as "worth modeling — ask about TOU," give ranges as estimates only, never quote a precise TOU savings number. No battery VPP at Duquesne (Watt Choices is efficiency/DR only).

(BACKUP ONLY) It keeps your home running when the grid goes down. Powers your essentials — heat, fridge, well pump, medical devices — through an outage, and with daytime sun, recharges to carry you through a multi-day event.

Rep layer: The resilience cure beat. Size expectations honestly (essentials, not necessarily whole-home indefinite).

We take it over. Top Tier becomes the single point of contact for your entire system — a new 10-year workmanship warranty, the 5-year Align Solar Protection contract ($0 deductible, non-transferable), and manufacturer warranty coordination.

Rep layer: Answers the orphaned-system problem. Transfers: workmanship with written consent; Align non-transferable; manufacturer per OEM terms.

Thousands you don't pay. The $11K+ Hidden Costs Avoided bundle — built into the takeover, not sold as extras.

Rep layer: Reframes total cost. "Your payment buys the battery plus warranty plus service plus inverter-replacement coverage — over $11K of value."

And your net metering stays exactly what it is — Duquesne filed nothing. Your existing 1:1 net metering is intact, and Duquesne sat out the repricing wave entirely — no filing, no case. (Even the other utilities' filings target utility-scale generators, not homes.) A battery maximizes the value of the net metering you have and keeps you independent no matter what the rules ever do.

Rate Justification + Own vs Rent render here.

Rep layer: Ties to the grandfathering section. Duquesne residential = full retail 1:1 (52 Pa. Code §75.13), PROTECTED — no filing exists (verified this cycle; re-check at Duquesne's next rate case since the stay-out expired 3/20/2026). If the customer heard about "Pennsylvania ending net metering": those are PPL/FirstEnergy filings, ≥100 kW only, and Duquesne has nothing on file. 25-yr rate case: conservative 5%, moderate 7%, aggressive 9%. Objection — "Rates might not climb." You're already at ~22.6¢ — the highest around — and the stay-out just expired; the question isn't if the next case comes, it's when.

What you actually own. The savings hero — combined value: the rate hedge + resilience + the protected net-metering position + the takeover bundle.

• Self-consumption: "Hedges Duquesne's rates, can play the TOU spread, and maximizes your net metering. Does not provide backup — ask about the upgrade."
• Backup: "Does all of that, plus keeps your critical loads running in an outage."

Rep layer: Duquesne combined value = resilience (April 2025 — the lead) + the highest-rate hedge + the TOU angle (modeled, not promised) + protected net metering + takeover. No VPP income to promise. No-backup disclosure fires ONLY for self-consumption config.

Urgency

The clocks that make acting now better than waiting.

The rate clock. You're already paying the highest all-in around (~22.6¢), the supply price resets twice a year — and the stay-out from the last rate case expired in March, so the next increase can be filed any time. Every month you wait is a month at the highest rates with no hedge.

Rep layer: The honest Duquesne urgency — the stay-out expiry (3/20/2026) is documented and means the next case is a when-not-if. Don't manufacture a net-metering deadline (there isn't one — Duquesne never filed).

System aging. Your inverter is aging toward its failure window. The longer you wait, the closer you get to an out-of-warranty replacement at $3,500–5,000 with no service relationship to handle it.

Rep layer: Universal urgency beat.

The storm clock. Pittsburgh just lived the proof — half the city dark last April, some homes for nine days. Installing now means you're protected before the next event, not scrambling after it.

Rep layer: Resilience urgency — honest given April 29, 2025 (325K+ out, ~54% of base, ~9 days). Factual, not exploitative — people died in that storm.

The Close

1. Verify credit + confirm configuration. Run the credit check and confirm the backup/self-consumption configuration.
2. Customer reads and signs the service agreement. Walk through the disclosures honestly — including that their net metering is intact and protected (no cliff), that the rate climb is the documented driver, and that there's no federal tax credit anymore.
3. Complete the Welcome Call. Finalizes the sale and sets expectations for installation.

Standing Rules (Do NOT Violate)

• ❌ NEVER coach reps to disqualify based on home tenure. Resale story is real — not "walk away."
• ❌ NEVER claim "all warranties transfer." Workmanship: with written consent. Align: non-transferable. Manufacturer: per OEM terms.
• ❌ NEVER fabricate inspection findings.
• ❌ NEVER quote a bill-reduction factor as a guarantee.
• ❌ NEVER quote a REP buyback rate as fixed/guaranteed — plan-dependent, confirm the customer's actual plan.
• ❌ 85+ confirmation call required. Customer confirms own finances, no POA, sound mind.
• ❌ Financing ends before age 91. 75 → 15-year max. 80 → 10-year max.
• ❌ Honest cancellation window. Overselling = free customer exit + $1K–$1.5K clawback.
• ❌ Certified before selling.

Go get the sale. A battery is a strong product — clean energy, independence, backup, long-term savings, and in Texas real VPP income. A customer who wants one for any honest reason is a good sale. We never walk away over price or low savings — that's the customer's call. Do right by the customer, protect the company, be honest.

PART B — The Deep Reference

1. Orientation

• Utility: Duquesne Light Company — independent (Duquesne Light Holdings), not part of FirstEnergy or Exelon. Regulated by the PA PUC.
• Territory: Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, and parts of Beaver County. Roughly 600,000 customers.
• Market type: Protected 1:1 net metering (52 Pa. Code §75.13). Restructured state — customers can shop for supply or take default service at the Price to Compare (PTC). Documented rate climb. No residential battery VPP. Winter/storm resilience market.
• Default config: Backup-capable ($18,500 / $23,942 / ~$228); self-consumption ($17,000 / $22,068 / ~$210).

2. How the Duquesne Bill Works — Restructured Supply + Distribution

Pennsylvania is a restructured state: the bill splits into supply (generation) and distribution (delivery).

1. Supply: the customer either shops with a competitive supplier or takes default service at the Price to Compare (PTC) — which resets every June 1 and December 1. Duquesne's residential PTC is ~14.14¢/kWh (June–Nov 2026 period).
2. Distribution: Duquesne's delivery charges — customer charge $13.00/mo plus ~8.25¢/kWh distribution (high). All-in, a Duquesne residential customer pays roughly 22.6¢/kWh effective — the highest among our Pennsylvania territories.
3. TOU Rider 8 (optional): newly expanded to all smart-meter residential customers — peak 31.76¢ (3–9 PM weekdays) / off-peak 5.85¢ / super-off-peak 4.30¢ (overnight). The ~7:1 peak-to-overnight spread is the battery-relevant shape.
4. Net metering: full retail 1:1 — exports offset usage at the full rate, monthly carryover, with annual true-up of excess at the PTC.

Why this matters for the pitch: at ~22.6¢ all-in, every self-supplied kWh is worth more here than anywhere else we operate in Pennsylvania — and the TOU rider adds a second, optional geometry where a battery shifts usage from a 32¢ peak to a 4¢ overnight. TOU HONESTY GATE: our tool does not yet model Duquesne TOU precisely; present the TOU angle as "worth modeling," with any figures labeled estimates. Their 1:1 net metering already values exports at retail.

3. Net Energy Metering — Intact and Protected (and the cliff that isn't)

Duquesne residential solar customers have full retail 1:1 net metering, and Duquesne has filed nothing to change it. This was primary-source verified this cycle.

• What residential customers have: full retail 1:1 under 52 Pa. Code §75.13, standard net-metering rider (Tariff No. 25) — unchanged.
• What customers may have heard about: PPL and FirstEnergy filed to move some solar generators to hourly market pricing — but those are other utilities, those filings apply only to ≥100 kW generators anyway, and Duquesne sat the repricing wave out entirely: no filing, no proceeding.
• The rep move when a customer raises it: "That coverage is about PPL and FirstEnergy — and even their cases only reprice utility-scale solar, 100 kilowatts and up. Duquesne hasn't filed anything. Your net metering is unchanged, full stop."
• One forward note (internal): the rate-case stay-out expired March 20, 2026 — when Duquesne's next rate case lands, re-verify that it doesn't carry an NEM component. Until then, PROTECTED.
• See the "Net Metering & Grandfathering Status" section for the cited detail; the flag for Duquesne is PROTECTED.

4. Rate Reality + Why Rates Climb

What's driving Duquesne rates up (named forward drivers):

1. The 2024 rate case + the expired stay-out. R-2024-3046523 (approved Nov 7, 2024) added ~$85.1M (~+4% residential, $130.67→$135.88 typical). The stay-out expired March 20, 2026 — the next case can be filed any time, and Duquesne's history says it will be.
2. PJM capacity costs. Regional capacity auction prices exploded, flowing into default-service supply through the twice-yearly PTC resets (~14.14¢ now).
3. High distribution costs. At ~8.25¢/kWh distribution, Duquesne's delivery side is the biggest single reason its all-in leads the state — and distribution is what rate cases raise.

Documented vs. speculation (say this right):

• ✅ "You're paying about 22.6 cents all-in — the highest of any territory we serve in Pennsylvania" (derived, documented components)
• ✅ "The protection period from the last rate case expired in March — the next increase can be filed any time" (documented: stay-out 3/20/2026)
• ✅ "On the TOU rider, overnight power is about 4 cents and peak is about 32 — a spread a battery can exploit; we'd model it for your usage" (documented rates; savings = estimate only, tool can't quote TOU precisely yet)
• ❌ "The TOU rider will save you $X" (tool cannot model Duquesne TOU yet — never quote a precise figure)
• ❌ "Your bill will be $X by 2030" (speculation)
• ❌ "You're about to lose net metering" (false — Duquesne never filed)

5. Incentives & Programs

• Battery VPP — none: Duquesne's Watt Choices is efficiency/demand-response only — no battery program, no program income to promise.
• TOU Rider 8 (the Duquesne-specific angle): optional time-of-use for all smart-meter residential customers — peak 31.76¢ (3–9 PM weekdays), off-peak 5.85¢, super-off-peak 4.30¢ overnight. For a solar+battery home this is a genuine arbitrage geometry (store cheap/solar, discharge at peak). HONESTY GATE: the tool does not yet model Duquesne TOU — present as "worth modeling — ask about the TOU option," label any figure an estimate, and never present TOU savings as promised.
• Pennsylvania state credit / rebate: none for solar or storage.
• Federal ITC: expired 12/31/2025. Do not quote 30%.

6. System Rescue Value — The System Takeover

This applies to any customer with existing solar — and it's identical across every Top Tier market. These are takeover facts, not TX-specific.

The Orphaned Solar Customer Problem. Many Texas solar customers installed during the 2019–2024 growth years and now face:

• An original installer that's gone out of business, been acquired, or stopped servicing residential (especially common after the federal tax credit expired Dec 2025)
• A 10-year workmanship warranty that's unenforceable (installer is gone)
• An inverter approaching or past typical failure windows
• No service relationship, and most companies refuse to service systems they didn't install

The Inverter Failure Reality. Inverters are the weakest link. Panels last 25–30 years; the inverter fails much sooner.

• SolarEdge string inverters: 8–15 years (12-yr standard warranty)
• Enphase microinverters: 10–20 years (25-yr warranty)
• Industry-wide: 70–90% of systems experience inverter failure within the panel lifespan
• When it fails on an orphaned system: production stops, bills jump to full retail, most providers won't quote it, out-of-pocket replacement is $3,500–5,000, and the customer is down 4–8 weeks.

What Top Tier's takeover provides (formalized through a Service Warranty Agreement with a brand-new 10-year Limited Workmanship and Roof Penetration Warranty):

• A new 10-year Top Tier workmanship warranty (regardless of system age)
• Manufacturer warranty claim handling (Top Tier chases the claim + labor, not the customer)
• Inverter replacement coverage when it fails within manufacturer warranty (customer pays nothing for the work)
• Single point of contact; monitoring setup help; performance verification at inspection

The $11K System Takeover Bundle (the exact 5-tile bundle on the proposal):

How to use it: "On top of the bill math, you're picking up over $11K of bundled services that aren't sold separately. If your inverter fails in year 12, the warranty handling alone is worth a few hundred; the replacement coordination saves $3–5K; the Align contract is $1,500 you'd otherwise pay. It adds up."

Align Solar Protection — the terms (get these right):

• 5-year term, $0 deductible, insurance-backed by American Bankers Insurance Company of Florida, non-transferable to subsequent owners.
• Covers: mechanical breakdown of existing PV (panels, inverters/optimizers, racking) — parts, labor, service calls.
• Does NOT cover: the new battery (own warranty), wear-and-tear, weather/hail, pre-existing conditions, roof issues.
• Age limits: panels/microinverters under 15 years; string/central inverters under 7 years. Not every system fully qualifies — disclose at inspection.
• It's ONE of three layers: (1) equipment manufacturer warranties, (2) Top Tier's 10-yr workmanship, (3) the 5-yr Align contract. Never call it "full coverage."
• NEVER say: "Everything's covered" / "never worry again" / "Align is your full coverage" / "you can extend beyond 5 years" / "Align transfers when you sell."

Quantifying the rescue value:

This is independent of bill savings — the rescue alone can be worth $4,000–7,500.

7. Outage Reality — Resilience in Duquesne Territory

Why outages happen here. Pittsburgh carries the most dramatic recent outage anchor in Pennsylvania:

• The April 29, 2025 windstorm: over 325,000 Duquesne customers out — roughly 54% of the company's entire base — with at least three deaths and restoration running about nine days. Everyone in this territory remembers it.
• The February 2022 ice storm and regular western-PA winter events (wet snow, wind through the river valleys).
• Hilly, tree-heavy terrain concentrates damage and slows restoration.

What a battery does — and the honest mechanism. Grid-tied solar shuts off automatically in an outage (anti-islanding), so a solar-only customer has no power even in daylight. A battery with backup keeps essential loads — refrigerator, heat circulation, well pump, medical devices, connectivity — running, and recharges from solar through a multi-day event.

How to pitch it honestly: don't promise whole-home indefinite backup unless sized for it. "A battery keeps your essentials running through an outage, and with your solar it carries you through a multi-day event. Last April more than half of Duquesne's customers lost power — some for over a week. That's the event a battery is built for." Use it factually and respectfully — people died in that storm; the point is preparedness, not fear.

8. Hidden Costs Avoided / What You Own vs What You Rent

• What you rent: grid power at the highest all-in around (~22.6¢), with the next rate case free to land any time — and no protection when the grid fails, which Pittsburgh just lived for nine days.
• What you own (with the battery): your production, stored and used against the climbing rate; backup for the storms; and full-retail value on everything you export under protected 1:1 net metering.
• Hidden costs avoided: the $11K takeover bundle + exposure to the documented climb + the cost of every multi-day outage (spoiled food, frozen pipes, hotel nights).

9. Battery Products

• Backup config (default — winter resilience): Tesla Powerwall 3 (13.5 kWh; Redline: $20,500), FranklinWH aPower 2 (15 kWh; Redline: $20,500). Not compatible with HDM.

• Self-consumption config: Enphase IQ 5P (10 kWh; Redline: $15,500 SC / $17,600 BU), SolarEdge Home Battery (9.7 kWh usable; Redline: $14,500 SC / $16,000 BU), SolarEdge Nexis (self-consumption only pending crew backup training; Redline: $15,500 SC).

• Duquesne takeaway: backup is the strong default — April 2025 makes the case. TOU-minded customers may also weigh discharge-rate fit for peak coverage. Confirm config in the tool.

• Financing terms vary by lender — price deals through the proposal tool.

10. Objection Handling

Universal objections (swap in Duquesne figures) + PA-specific objections.

"I read Pennsylvania is ending net metering — shouldn't I wait and see?" (PA-specific — the trust-building correction)

"I'm glad you asked, because there's a lot of scary coverage out there. Here's the reality: those cases are PPL's and FirstEnergy's — and even those only reprice utility-scale solar, 100 kilowatts and up. Duquesne hasn't filed anything at all. Your net metering is unchanged, full stop. What's actually worth your attention here is the rates — you're paying the highest all-in of anywhere we work in Pennsylvania, and the next increase can be filed any time — and that's what the battery hedges."

"My solar already covers my bill — why add a battery?" (Duquesne-specific — the April reframe)

"It offsets your usage, and you should keep that. But two things it can't do: it can't shield you from Duquesne's rates — the highest around, with the next case free to land any time — and it produced nothing for anyone during the nine days after last April's windstorm, because grid-tied solar shuts off in an outage. A battery does both."

"What's this time-of-use thing — would that help me?" (Duquesne-specific — the honest TOU answer)

"It might, and it's worth modeling. Duquesne's time-of-use option prices overnight power around 4 cents and evening peak around 32 — and a battery is exactly the machine that moves your usage from one to the other. I'm not going to promise you a number today, because the modeling depends on your actual usage — but it's a real option we'd look at together, and it's only on the table if you have the battery."

"Why is the loan more than the system price?"

"The cash price is $17,000–18,500 depending on config. Service Finance adds dealer fees bringing the financed amount to about $22,068–23,942. Cash or a HELOC is cheaper if that's an option. Pennsylvania has no state credit or battery rebate, so the value is the rate hedge, the resilience, and the takeover — not a discount."

"What if I sell the house?"

"Resale asset — your closing equity pays off the loan, and the new owner inherits a fully-owned system with backup. Top Tier's 10-year workmanship warranty transfers with written consent; the Align contract is non-transferable."

11. DO SAY / NEVER SAY

12. Required Disclosures

1. ☐ Savings are estimates; supply prices (PTC) reset June 1/Dec 1 and distribution rates change through PUC proceedings — verify against current rates.
2. ☐ Residential net metering is full retail 1:1 (52 Pa. Code §75.13) and unchanged; Duquesne has no filing to change it (other PA utilities' cases reprice ≥100 kW generators only).
3. ☐ Duquesne has no residential battery VPP or program income. TOU Rider 8 figures quoted are current tariff rates; any TOU savings discussed are estimates only — the proposal tool does not yet model Duquesne TOU.
4. ☐ Pennsylvania has no state solar/storage tax credit or rebate. No federal ITC after 12/31/2025.
5. ☐ Align Solar Protection is non-transferable; workmanship warranty transfer requires written consent; manufacturer warranties transfer per OEM terms.
6. ☐ Align coverage is contingent on inspection + age limits (panels <15 yr, inverters <7 yr); one of three coverage layers, not full coverage.
7. ☐ Backup duration depends on system sizing and load; whole-home indefinite backup is not implied.
8. ☐ Pricing confirmed in the tool before commitment.

13. Quick-Reference Numbers (dated — confirm before quoting)

• Net metering (residential): full retail 1:1 — no Duquesne filing exists (52 Pa. Code §75.13; Tariff No. 25)
• Residential PTC: ~14.14¢/kWh; customer charge $13.00/mo + distribution ~8.25¢; all-in ~22.6¢ (highest among our PA territories)
• TOU Rider 8: peak 31.76¢ (3–9 PM) / off 5.85¢ / super-off 4.30¢ — all smart-meter residential; savings = estimates only (tool can't model yet)
• Rate case: R-2024-3046523 (+$85.1M, ~+4% res., approved 11/7/2024); stay-out EXPIRED 3/20/2026 — next case any time
• Western-PA production note: ~1,050 vs ~1,250 kWh/kW-yr (~16% below eastern PA) — size battery expectations accordingly
• Battery VPP: none; state credit: none; Federal ITC: expired 12/31/2025
• Inverter replacement out-of-pocket: $3,500–5,000
• System takeover bundle: ~$11,800
• Default config: backup $18,500 / self-consumption $17,000
• Customers: ~600,000 | Storm anchor: Apr 29, 2025 windstorm — 325K+ out (~54% of base), ≥3 deaths, ~9 days restoration; Feb 2022 ice

14. Sell Hard, Sell Honest — the standing rules

• Never sell the cliff — Duquesne never filed anything; other utilities' cases target ≥100 kW generators. Correcting a customer's fear with the facts builds more trust than exploiting it.
• Never manufacture a net-metering deadline — the honest urgency is the highest-rates-plus-expired-stay-out story and the April 2025 storm clock.
• Never sell a spread — residential is 1:1; there isn't one. The value is the hedge + resilience + takeover.
• Never quote a precise TOU savings figure — the tool can't model Duquesne TOU yet; "worth modeling" with estimate-labeled ranges only. And never imply Duquesne pays battery income — no program exists.
• Never quote the federal ITC (expired).