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Net metering programs serve as an important incentive for consumer
investment in renewable energy generation. Net metering enables
customers to use their own generation to offset their consumption over
a billing period by allowing their electric meters to turn backwards
when they generate electricity in excess of the their demand. This
offset means that customers receive retail prices for the excess
electricity they generate. Without net metering, a second meter is
usually installed to measure the electricity that flows back to the
provider, with the provider purchasing the power at a rate much lower
than the retail rate.
Net metering is a low-cost, easily administered method of encouraging
customer investment in renewable energy technologies. It increases the
value of the electricity produced by renewable generation and allows
customers to "bank" their energy and use it a different time than it is
produced giving customers more flexibility and allowing them to
maximize the value of their production. Providers may also benefit from
net metering because when customers are producing electricity during
peak periods, the system load factor is improved.
Currently, net metering is offered in more than 35 states (see
the summary table and map below). For a more detailed description of
state net metering policies and links to the authorizing legislation,
see the DSIRE database,
which is a project of the Interstate Renewable Energy Council funded by
the U.S. DOE and managed by the North Carolina Solar Center.
Some of the the following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.
Cook, C. and J. Cross. (1999). A
Case Study: The Economic Cost of Net-Metering in Maryland: Who Bears
the Economic Burden? Prepared by Maryland Energy Adminstration,
Annapolis, MD.
Forsyth, T.L., M. Pedden, and T. Gagliano. (2002). The Effects of Net Metering on the Use of Small-Scale Wind Systems in the United States, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, NREL/TP-500-32471, November. (PDF: 1.3 MB)
Hesse, P. (2000). Connecting a Small-Scale Renewable Energy System to an Electric Transmission System, Golden, CO: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Clearinghouse. April.
Starrs, T. (1996). Net Metering: New Opportunities for Home Power. Washington D.C.: Renewable Energy Policy Project.
Wan, Y. (1996). Net Metering Programs, NREL/SP-460-21651, Topical Issues Brief. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. December.
Wan, Y. and Green, H.J. (1998). Current Experience with Net Metering
Programs, Presented at WINDPOWER '98, Bakersfield, CA. April 27-May 1,
1998.
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