NEM 3.0 And The Future of Solar

engage on February 7

Net Energy Metering (NEM) is a solar incentive program that allows you to store energy in the electric grid. Essentially, if your solar system generates more energy than it consumes, the owners may sell the excess energy to utilities and receive credits on their monthly bills.

Then, when your solar panels are not producing enough energy, you pull electricity from the grid and use these credits to offset the cost of that energy.

The new scheme, Net Energy Metering (NEM) 3.0, would diminish the credit generated for solar owners and levy extra monthly charges on the electricity bills of solar owners.

The California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) proposed judgment has been made public. This new Net Metering method will not benefit you, the ratepayer, and many households or ratepayers will find themselves between a rock and a hard place.

The following are some of the proposal’s primary points:

A monthly “Grid Participation” fee of roughly $8 per KW of installed solar capacity will be levied. This might equate to about $48 per month for the average household.
They will change their billing method from “Net Metering” to “Net Billing.” Under the new “net billing” model, homeowners will be able to scale their system for future demand at a rate of 150 percent of their current consumption. This is crucial for covering the expenses of EV charging.

In order to increase the usage of grid storage, utilities will incentivize the purchase of a home storage system (batteries). This will help offset the “grid participation” charges to some extent.

For the second time in four years, the California Public Utilities Commission will initiate a new process to reform California’s NEM program. Despite the fact that no new rules or regulations have been put in place, a final decision on NEM 3.0 is expected in 2022.

The verdict might have a huge and negative impact on Californians interested in adopting solar, or it could usher in a golden age. If the CPUC opts for the latter, we may see larger consumer savings and more clean energy throughout the state. Otherwise, this verdict might effectively put an end to the California solar industry.

The state’s investor-owned utilities (IOUs), Sempra Gas Company (which owns San Diego Gas & Electric), PG&E, and Southern California Edison, all issued joint opening statements.

The utilities lobbied for significant NEM reduction in their proposals, limiting consumers’ ability to invest in their own solar energy system. The CPUC proposal, however, was originally slated for a vote on January 27th, but then delayed now indefinitely due to protests from all quarters.

Learn about how these changes will affect you and get a customized analysis. Sign up for your free consultation with our energy specialist and get started on going solar ASAP!

Edited by Angelica