What is Net Metering?
Net metering is a system that utilizes incentives to promote participation in renewable energy systems. It is a possible circumstance that a renewable energy system, such as a solar panel setup, will generate more energy than is actually needed to power the residence(s) or building(s) utilizing it. Under net metering, utility companies are required to provide credit the owner of the system for their excess generated energy. In these cases, net metering provides the means for the extra solar energy to go to use rather than being wasted. Since utility companies are required to buy this energy, they will have to decrease the amount of energy that they generate using fossil fuels, which will help in the global effort of battling climate change. A detailed chart (2) of the process is pictured below:
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What is Kansas’s wrong with Kansas’s current Net Metering policy?
The fact that Kansas has a net metering policy at all is a step in the right direction for the promotion of solar energy usage. Net metering is not a nation wide policy that all states must follow, and how it is pursued varies from state to state. With that being said, some states have no net metering policy in place, such as South Dakota or Oklahoma. However, Kansas’s net metering policy is not perfect system. Kansas’s current program is not a considered a ‘true net metering’ program, since it does not provide credit to ALL of the renewable energy collected from system setups. Instead, utility companies are only required to purchase renewable energy from net metered systems until they collect the equivalent of “1% of the utility’s peak demand during the previous year” (1). Though the renewable energy systems are still collecting excess energy, Kansas’s current policy allows this power to go to waste. This 1% rule also puts a limit on the amount of kW allowed to be installed each year for renewable energy systems, which discourages growth in solar panel participation.
The current net metering policy also permits utility companies to purchase the excess energy at “rate structures in their individual rate cases” (1). This allows utilities to credit excess renewable energy at the cost rate that they pay wholesale energy providers rather than what the energy actually is valued at. The policy also lets utility companies distribute demand charges, which pose extra costs on those people trying to use solar energy. In a time where climate change becomes an ever growing threat, we should be encouraging green efforts rather than penalizing them.
What are the potential changes to Kansas’s net metering policy to better promote renewable energy?
To promote solar energy, Kansas’s current policy could be altered to mimic the net metering policies practiced by states active in the progression of renewables. Unlike the 1% cap that Kansas has on their net metered systems, the net metering program established for Colorado has no cap to the kW allowed to be installed each year and the amount of energy that utility companies must credit. Colorado’s policy requires that all excess renewable energy generated from utility customers must be “credit to the customer’s next bill” (3), instead of being turned away after the utility cap is met. This allows more people to be able to have homes run solar power, as well as provide a greater cost incentive to invest in solar.
Displacing the wholesale pricing and demand charging ability of utilities Kansas’s net metering would remove the penalty placed on those who wish to live a renewable energy life style. These extra costs can make individuals think twice about whether it is worth to invest in a solar system. Colorado’s policy serves to”provide net metering service at non-discriminatory rates to customer-generators” (3), lifting the disincentive off renewable energy users.
References:
- DSIRE: “Net Metering” http://programs.dsireusa.org/system/program/detail/3403
- HelioPower: “Net Metering Explained” https://heliopower.com/2016/11/18/net-metering-explained/
- Department of Energy: “Colorado Net Metering” https://www.energy.gov/savings/net-metering-10
Kansas Solar Policies 