![]() Some states buy electricity back at retail prices, which is the price per kWh that a consumer would normally pay the power company. ![]() South Dakota and Tennessee are the only states with no form of net metering in place. have laws promoting net metering, and 11 states have alternative net metering programs through utility companies. Net energy metering originated in the United States during the 1980s, with the first laws being passed in Idaho in 1980. The price per watt of electricity sold back to the energy company can also vary by jurisdiction, as some locations buy the energy back at wholesale prices instead of the retail price. Some jurisdictions allow indefinite energy rollover, while others limit it to a monthly basis. Luckily, it’s become a widespread practice, having been implemented all over the globe, although the terms may vary greatly from location to location. Net metering is possible only in jurisdictions that allow it. Source: Unspash/Miha Rekar Where is Net Metering Available? Stored energy can be tapped into during the winter months when there’s less daylight. Since people tend to be out of the house during the day, consumers can generate and store their extra electricity while at work or school, then use it during peak times during the evening and throughout the night, when there’s no sun to power the solar panels. This can also be applied on an intraday basis. If you generate a lot of extra energy in June, when the weather is sunny, you can store it for later use in December, and mitigate the need to pull from municipal power sources during the winter months when there’s less sunlight. This is especially useful in areas where the sunshine is variable or seasonally dependent. This earns the consumer energy credits which can be exchanged with the local energy company. They can also use the grid as a virtual battery, and store the extra electricity for later use in jurisdictions that support monthly or annual rollover of stored power. The consumer doesn’t have to sell the electricity back to the grid. When the consumer’s solar array is producing more than the current household energy usage, the power meter will start to spin in reverse. ![]() When their household energy needs are completely covered, however, then that extra unused energy goes back into the power grid and is bought by the utility company, earning the consumer extra income. When they don’t, they still pull some power from the grid, and will still pay a small energy bill. When the consumer installs solar panels, they may or may not cover their entire household energy usage. This is most commonly done with solar energy, but can be done with any form of energy, such as wind or hydroelectricity. To put it simply, net metering is when the local utility company buys unused power from a consumer who produces their own electricity. Net metering can make residential solar a lucrative endeavor.
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