The primary goal of net metering is to allow consumers to generate enough electricity to offset some or all of their annual energy use. It is more economical, efficient and environmentally friendly to reduce your energy use before expending the time and expense of installing a renewable generating system. CEC has online tools to help you identify cost-effective energy-efficiency improvements and conservation efforts, which will help to lower your energy usage and costs.
By first reducing your energy use, you may be able to reduce the size and cost of your renewable generator.
Once energy-efficiency and conservation measures have been implemented, you would be ready to size a renewable generator system to offset the remaining energy usage.
Energy derived from sunlight, wind, falling water, biomass, sustainable or otherwise, (the definitions of which shall be liberally construed), energy from waste, landfill gas, municipal solid waste, wave motion, tides, and geothermal power.
Your electric bill will not show any output of energy your system produced. Your bill will only show the difference between the energy generated at your site and the energy consumed from CEC's distribution system; hence, the term Net Metering. Most renewable systems sold today have equipment with access to renewable generator readings that will estimate the output of the system. You will need to consult the manufacturer/installer of your system to determine if this is available.
You pay only for the net energy that you have received from the system, plus any fixed monthly charges provided by the applicable rate schedule.
100% Renewable Electric Service, Rider "RE" (PDF)
This Rider is available on a voluntary basis as a “companion rate” to any Customer who contracts with the Cooperative for the purchase and retirement of renewable energy attributes (“Renewable Energy”) for all of the Customer’s monthly consumption under an existing Cooperative Rate Schedule. Except as noted below, this Rider is available in all territory served by the Cooperative, subject to the Terms and Conditions of the Cooperative on file with the Virginia State Corporation Commission.
Net Metering, Rider NEM-10 (PDF)
This Rider is available to residential class Customers.
View our Rates page for more information.
All net-metering inquiries and applications should be sent via email.
Yes. There is a maximum capacity limit of 1 megawatt for non-residential systems, and a 20 kilowatt limit for residential systems.
This question is best answered by your installer or solar panel vendor, but you can get a general idea of payback period by using the tools at PVWATTs to determine the value of your generation per year compared to the total install cost.
Safety is CEC's utmost concern. The Net Metering participant's generation must disconnect from the utility power system whenever an outage occurs. This prevents the member's generator from energizing CEC's facilities and creating a hazard. The installer and your local building inspector should work together to make sure the system is installed correctly to protect you and your home, and the CEC inspector will check to make sure the connection is safe for CEC.
Also known as green certificates, green tags, or tradable renewable certificates, they represent the environmental attributes of the power produced from renewable energy projects and are sold separate from commodity electricity.
For more information, visit the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy's website.
- DSIRE Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency, a source of information on state, local, utility and federal incentives and policies that promote renewable energy and energy efficiency.
- United State Department of Energy, Solar Energy Technologies Program, which gives more information about cost-effective solar technologies that have the greatest potential to benefit the nation and the world.
- United States Department of Energy, Wind Powering America, which gives information about wind power, and a wind resource map for Virginia.