For our current solar or wind customers, learn how solar can impact your energy bill and contribute to a more sustainable San Diego.
Current solar customers are either enrolled in Net Energy Metering (NEM) or Solar Billing Plan (SBP), depending on when you received Permission to Operate (PTO).
If you applied for interconnection of an eligible renewable energy self-generation system, such as solar or wind, on or after April 15, 2023, you are a Solar Billing Plan (also known as Net Billing Tariff, or NEM 3.0) customer.
If you installed an eligible renewable energy self-generation system, such as solar or wind, before April 15, 2023, you are a Net Energy Metering customer.
Existing NEM 1.0 and NEM 2.0 customers will remain on NEM until the completion of their legacy period, or 20 years from the time their system was connected to the electric grid, after which they will be transitioned to SBP. Existing NEM customers will also be transitioned to SBP if they increase the capacity of their generation system by more than 10% or 1 kW, or if they choose to switch to SBP.
SBP was established by the California Public Utilities Commission in December 2022 as the replacement to NEM. It went into effect in April 2023 as a new approach for compensating renewable energy generation and is intended to promote grid reliability and incentivize solar with battery storage.
NEM 1.0 | NEM 2.0 | SBP | |
|---|---|---|---|
Enrollment Details | Permission to Operate (PTO) before July 1, 2017 | Permission to Operate (PTO) before July 1, 2017 | Permission to Operate (PTO) after April 14, 2023 |
Legacy Period | 20-year legacy period associated with the account meter; if a customer moves out of the service address, the meter’s NEM status and legacy timeframe will transfer to the new resident. | 20-year legacy period associated with the account meter; if a customer moves out of the service address, the meter’s NEM status and legacy timeframe will transfer to the new resident. | 9-year legacy period associated with the customer; if a customer moves out of the service address, the meter’s legacy timeframe will not transfer to the new resident. |
Monthly Payments | Community Power customers are defaulted to monthly billing, but can choose annual billing. | Community Power customers are defaulted to monthly billing, but can choose annual billing. | All customers are on monthly billing with no option for annual billing. |
Generation Credits and Usage Charges | Credits for excess generation are accrued at the same retail rate that customers pay for their electricity usage. | Credits for excess generation are accrued at the same retail rate that customers pay for their electricity usage. | Credits for excess generation are accrued at the hourly Avoided Cost Calculator (ACC) rate, but charges for electricity usage are applied at retail rates. |
Community Power Annual Cash Out | 12-month true up period.
Net Surplus Compensation (NSC) is issued based on annual net generation volumes (kWh) and Community Power’s NSC rate, which is closely related to the wholesale price of energy. | 12-month true up period.
Net Surplus Compensation (NSC) is issued based on annual net generation volumes (kWh) and Community Power’s NSC rate, which is closely related to the wholesale price of energy. | 12-month true up period.
Net Surplus Compensation (NSC) is issued based on annual net generation volumes (kWh) and Community Power’s NSC rate, which is closely related to the wholesale price of energy. SDG&E applies an annual True Up Adjustment for SDG&E delivery service based on net generation volumes. |
Eligible Import Rate Schedule | Customers can take service under any rate schedule. | Customers must take service under a Time-of-Use (TOU) rate schedule. | Residential customers must take service under a “highly differentiated” EV-TOU-5 rate schedule. Nonresidential customers must take service under a Time-of-Use (TOU) rate schedule. |
Netting | Interval netting of exports and imports | Interval netting of exports and imports | No netting of exports and imports |
Transition to Successor | Transition to SBP after 20-year legacy period has concluded.
Accounts will transition to SBP if system capacity increases by more than 10% or 1 kW, whichever is larger. | Transition to SBP after 20-year legacy period has concluded.
Accounts will transition to SBP if system capacity increases by more than 10% or 1 kW, whichever is larger. | N/A |
CARE and FERA | Total bill discount applied | Total bill discount applied | Total bill discount applied
Community Power applies a $0.11 per kWh adder to exports |
Adding battery storage can help maximize the benefits of your existing solar system.
Batteries can store the excess energy that your solar panels produce for the times when you need it most — like times of high demand, when electricity is more expensive, or even during power outages.
Community Power’s Solar Battery Savings Program can help single-family homeowners in our service territory add battery storage to their existing solar systems. Learn more on our Solar Battery Savings page.
If you’d like your battery to help offset the amount of energy that you are pulling from the local energy grid, it is best for your battery to be sized appropriately to the excess solar you are producing — if your battery is too large, your solar system won’t produce enough energy to charge the battery requiring you to charge it with energy from the grid.
However, if your primary reason for adding a battery is resiliency, then you may prefer to charge your battery from the grid during off-peak hours. Talk with your contractor to determine the best system size for you.
Interested in adding battery storage to your solar system?
سواء كنت تقوم بتركيب الطاقة الشمسية أو التحول إلى السيارات الكهربائية، يمكننا مساعدتك في الحفاظ على ترقيات كفاءة الطاقة بأسعار معقولة.
لديك القدرة على اختيار خطة الخدمة الأنسب لك.