Making solar hot

If the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative had its way, solar panels would soon become as much of a must-have as the Toyota Prius hybrid car, according to Rob Pratt, director of the renewable energy trust of the Collaborative, a quasi-public agency.

''It's going to be a status symbol" for the home or office, predicted Pratt of the panels that generate electricity from the sun. ''You'll get granite countertops. And you'll get solar panels. This is the Prius for the house."

The trust just launched a $5 million rebate program to help consumers, businesses, and institutions buy renewable energy systems. One goal is to double the estimated number of nearly 400 Bay State homes and buildings with existing solar electric systems.

Among those participating in an earlier rebate program was Harvard Business School, which got $143,500 to install a $365,300 system in 2003 on the roof of its fitness center.

''It's been great," said Frank Hayes, the school's chief of operations. ''There's no maintenance. We literally have not touched it."

The trust's new rebate program is also designed to help create solar industry jobs in the state. One local company is Evergreen Solar Inc. of Marlborough, which manufactures solar panels. Though unprofitable in 2004, its revenues rose from $9.3 million in 2003 to $23.5 million last year. Its panels were used when Conservation Services Group Inc. of Westborough designed a system for a BJ's Wholesale Club in Stoneham.

''Many of our customers are companies that want to be good corporate citizens," said William Kanzer, Evergreen Solar's director of marketing communications.

Many homeowners also want to be good environmental citizens. Brian Holland, a retired physicist who believes the United States is too dependent on foreign oil, wanted to reduce his consumption of nonrenewable energy at his Framingham home. He and his wife, Peggy, own nearly three acres of land, and last year Holland built a shed on a portion of their property with good sun exposure, and put solar panels on its roof.

According to NStar Electric & Gas Corp., an electricity distributor, the average monthly electricity bill for residential customers is $72.50, though numbers can vary widely, depending on the season, a house's size, and a resident's consumption habits.

Holland said solar panels are supplying half of his electricity needs.

''I'm getting monthly bills of $40 to $60 instead of $80 to $120," he said.

Janis Anderson, 53, is also concerned about the environment. The psychologist had a $16,000 solar electric system installed on the roof of her Jamaica Plain home. She qualified for $7,000 in rebates.

The system generates all of the electricity she needs during summer months, she said. In the winter, she has to pay NStar bills. A solar electric system can also entitle an owner to something called Renewable Energy Certificates, based on the system's output. Anderson's certificates are purchased by the Massachusetts Energy Consumers Alliance, a Boston nonprofit. Those payments offset her winter electricity bills, Anderson said. In effect, she paid nothing for electricity last year.

Meanwhile, many people still have outdated perceptions of solar panels. Thirty years ago, many panels designed to heat water stood upright on roofs and were eyesores to some. Today's electricity-generating panels lie flatter, hugging the roof.

''From an aesthetic standpoint, I don't see anything the neighbors could complain about, and they haven't," Anderson said.

Given limited data, it's hard to say how much a solar electric system could increase a home's sales price, but Pratt is convinced that such an investment adds value and cachet. He just bought a Toyota Prius, which has been ''a big hit among my daughter's 15-year-old friends," he said. He thinks solar electric systems could have a similar capacity to impress people.

''There's a wow factor to it," he said.

Chris Reidy can be reached at reidy@globe.com.