Solar Nerd articles about: Net Metering

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Solar panels in Reno, Nevada
Nevada net metering rules demystified
When it comes to solar energy potential, Nevada is one of the best places in the country. That’s why some of the largest utility-scale solar power plants are located in Nevada, such as the 552 megawatt Copper Mountain Solar Facility and the 392 MW Ivanpah concentrating solar facility. Utilities in Nevada, however, aren’t quite as keen when it comes to solar panels that are owned by homeowners. After all, every kilowatt-hour of electricity that a homeowner generates with their own solar panels represents lost revenue for the utility companies.
Photo of a house with all-black solar panels.
Latest attack on net metering in California defeated - for now
A revision to net metering rules in California that was working its way through the California Legislature failed to get enough votes on June 2 to move forward, killing the proposal for now. The proposal, Assembly Bill 1139, was authored by state assembly member Lorena Gonzalez and contained several controversial changes to California’s current net metering rules for solar homeowners, most notably: Substantially reducing the credit paid for selling excess solar electricity back to the utility.
Photo of a sunny California seashore.
California solar tax credits and incentives - the complete guide (2020 edition)
California is a big and sunny state, so it’s no surprise that it’s one of the largest markets for solar in the United States. This is helped by the 26% federal tax credit, but there are other rebates that Californians can take advantage of to lower their costs even further. Here’s a complete list of solar tax credits and other incentives available to California homeowners in 2021. Federal solar tax credit Homeowners across the US can take advantage of the federal Residential Energy Efficient Property Credit, also known as the solar Investment Tax Credit for the business community.
Photo of an electricity transmission tower.
Is net metering unfair to non-solar homeowners?
Net metering is an important policy that gives solar homeowners full credit for any solar electricity they send into the grid. But many utilities want to end the policy, claiming that it’s an unfair subsidy that raises the cost of electricity for non-solar homes. More than that, electric utilities claim that solar net metering is a subsidy for relatively rich homeowners who can afford to go solar at the expense of lower income people who can’t afford to put solar panels on their house, or don’t have that option because they’re renters.
Photo of a transmission tower.
How do solar panels connect to the grid?
One of the fundamental concepts of home solar is grid interconnection - otherwise known as connecting to the grid. What does this mean? First, let’s define exactly what “grid” means. When talking about home solar, the grid refers to the power grid, also known as the electric grid. It is the collection of machinery and wires that generates electricity and brings it to your home. There are two parts to the grid: generation, which consists of a variety of power plants such as coal plants, gas turbines, nuclear power plants, wind turbines, hydroelectric dams, and solar panels.
Photo of the White Mountains in New Hampshire.
New Hampshire net metering and solar incentives
Is net metering available in New Hampshire? Yes! Net metering is currently available from all electric utilities in New Hampshire. Credits for excess generation are banked and rolled over to the next month. Such credits may be carried forward indefinitely, but customers may elect to be paid for their credits at the avoided cost rate, which will be lower than the residential retail rate for electricity. The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission website has the complete text of the current net metering rules.
Welcome to Utah
FAQs - Utah net metering and solar incentives
Is net metering available in Utah? Net metering is available with some utilities in Utah. Rocky Mountain Power, the largest utility in the state, is currently transitioning away from net metering and offers net billing to new customers. Municipal utilities in Utah offer a combination of net metering, net billing, and feed-in tariffs. We list this policies in detail below. Net metering with Rocky Mountain Power In September 2017, Rocky Mountain Power came to an agreement with solar advocates and state agencies to end net metering for new customers and adopt a net billing scheme that is still relatively favorable to solar customers in the state.