Section 45Y Clean Electricity Credit Estimator

Convert annual generation eligible for Section 45Y into cash proceeds. Provide the MWh produced and the IRS-posted per-kWh rate to see the gross credit, adders from domestic content or energy community bonuses, and a net monetized value after any transfer discount.

Metered net output eligible for the 45Y clean electricity production credit.
Use the current-year IRS inflation-adjusted rate (full credit shown as dollars per kWh).
Stack domestic content, energy community, or storage adders. Defaults to 0% when blank.
Percent haircut applied when transferring the credit or using bridge financing. Defaults to 10% when blank.

Indicative modelling only—confirm eligibility, labor compliance, and credit transfer rules with your tax advisors.

Examples

  • 210,000 MWh, $0.0275 base rate, 20% bonus, 10% discount ⇒ Gross Section 45Y credit: $6,930,000.00 USD • Bonus uplift applied: 20.00% • Monetized after 10.00% discount: $6,237,000.00 USD • Net incentive: $29.70 USD/MWh ($0.03 USD/kWh).
  • 75,000 MWh, $0.0180 base rate, bonus blank, 7% discount ⇒ Gross Section 45Y credit: $1,350,000.00 USD • Bonus uplift applied: 0.00% • Monetized after 7.00% discount: $1,255,500.00 USD • Net incentive: $16.74 USD/MWh ($0.02 USD/kWh).

FAQ

Can storage paired with renewables claim 45Y?

Standalone storage paired with clean generation qualifies beginning in 2025 when it produces zero-emission electricity; include its output in the annual generation input when eligible.

How do I reflect curtailment or forced outages?

Use metered net generation actually delivered to the grid. Update the MWh input after each year-end true-up to reflect curtailment losses.

What if I elect the investment credit instead?

45Y is mutually exclusive with 48E. Run both scenarios—this tool covers the production-based route, while 48E requires modeling eligible basis and ITC percentages.

Additional Information

  • The 45Y base rate shown here reflects the full credit; apply a 0.2 factor to your input if labor standards are not met.
  • Bonuses stack multiplicatively on the base credit—enter the combined percentage uplift (e.g., 10% domestic content + 10% energy community = 20%).
  • Credits may be transferred for cash once per tax year; discounts capture transaction costs, legal fees, and credit-buyer spreads.

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