Electric Coop doesn't pay for any KWH's above what you use...

BilljustBill
BilljustBill Solar Expert Posts: 219 ✭✭✭
in General Solar Power Topics #1
I ran across a home this morning while out going to a local community wide garage sale.  It had a 2500 watt roof top system with a Sunnyboy grid tie inverter.

The owner said they were tied into an electric company that was a Coop here in Texas.  This Coop has a use KWH meter and a buy-back meter.  As I understood the owner's issue with the Coop, it is that the Coop credits each KWH generated at full value against all KWHours the home uses each month.  (Simple Example: Generate 1,000 KWH and house useage is 1,000 KWH means zero electric bill)  But, with any surplus KWHours going back into their grid, there is ZERO payment for them just because THEY ARE A Coop electric company.

Was that the intent of the law when the buy-back was originally written?   Any of you run across this kind of grid tie agreement?

Thanks,
Bill 
Bill
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Comments

  • Mountain Don
    Mountain Don Solar Expert Posts: 494 ✭✭✭
    edited February 2016 #2
    Doesn't matter much what was originally written as a rule as rules can and do change as the recent Nevada Utility Commission decision illustrates.  The power company is a business, co-op or not. When I first looked at grid tie solar where we are in NM the government rules stated that over generation was to be credited to the solar owner at a rate higher than the tier one rate the consumers paid. I thought that was great for the consumer but not a fair deal for the power company. I have a business background and could not understand that rule from the business point of view. Now, a decade later, the same power company only has to pay about a fourth of the tier one rate to the solar owner's over generation. At least that is averaged over the course of a year, so that helps a bit to even things out. Maybe the consumers don't like that deal so much but they sure like to be grid connected for the convenience of not having to buy batteries. 
    Northern NM, 624 watts PV, The Kid CC, GC-2 batteries @ 24 VDC, Outback VFX3524M
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  • Blackcherry04
    Blackcherry04 Solar Expert Posts: 2,490 ✭✭✭
    #3
    I have a Co-op here, I have to assume the net metering is the same They won't buy and generated KWH, but they will bank it. With Banking you can balance the usage like a savings account. I usually go into winter with 2,300 or so KWH's banked and I burn them off with a heat pump. Dollar for dollar, I probably break even on it, because I'd either buy Gas or Electricity. I have not had a electric bill in 6 years except for a $9.00 a month membership fee.
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  • Photowhit
    Photowhit Solar Expert Posts: 6,017 ✭✭✭✭✭
    #4
    Blackcherry04 said:
    I have a Co-op here, I have to assume the net metering is the same They won't buy and generated KWH, but they will bank it. With Banking you can balance the usage like a savings account. I usually go into winter with 2,300 or so KWH's banked and I burn them off with a heat pump. Dollar for dollar, I probably break even on it, because I'd either buy Gas or Electricity. I have not had a electric bill in 6 years except for a $9.00 a month membership fee.

    HaHa! My COOP won't bank the KWhs month to month, but they do pay their cheapest wholesale rate for the overage about 2 cents a KWh. Our monthly fee has gone to $33, I haven't been connected for 3 years and just learned about the increase to $30 and now $33. It only needs to get to about $50 and if my poisoned battery makes it 12 years I should be about neutral cost wise. Even ahead if I never replace my inverter, which was planned and budgeted 3 years ago.
    Home system 4000 watt (Evergreen) array standing, with 2 Midnite Classic Lites,  Midnite E-panel, Magnum MS4024, Prosine 1800(now backup) and Exeltech 1100(former backup...lol), 660 ah 24v Forklift battery(now 10 years old). Off grid for 20 years (if I include 8 months on a bicycle).
    - Assorted other systems, pieces and to many panels in the closet to not do more projects.
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  • Dave Angelini
    Dave Angelini Solar Expert Posts: 6,976 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #5
    This whole issue is driving the solar grid industry toward maximizing self consumption. It is a  load automation issue that I am very happy about!

    I am working on it in a small way but for offgrid, it is the best thing since the bottom fell out of panel prices!  I love it! 
    "we go where power lines don't" Sierra Nevada mountain area
       htps://offgridsolar1.com/
    E-mail offgridsolar@sti.net

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  • solar_dave
    solar_dave Solar Expert Posts: 2,397 ✭✭✭✭
    #6
    Yeah the utilities hammer you on any overages at year end on those sorts of plans.  My true up this year with APS was for 520 kWh and I got $15.30 credit on my account. This was 3 times higher when the system was installed plus they have added a couple new fees for everyone. What is pretty rotten is this power probably never left the local transformer and was consumed by my neighbors at the prevailing rate as high as $0.254 a kWh.  

    We used to try and get as high a payback as possible but at those current rates we look for opportunity loads to use them up in November and December.
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  • Dave Angelini
    Dave Angelini Solar Expert Posts: 6,976 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    #7
    Hey Dave !  Still like that picture of your car out in the desert!  Reminds me of college in Phoenix and the great nights out in the desert.
    I still have dreams that I am not going to graduate.....The electric car must be great for your strategy.
    "we go where power lines don't" Sierra Nevada mountain area
       htps://offgridsolar1.com/
    E-mail offgridsolar@sti.net

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  • solar_dave
    solar_dave Solar Expert Posts: 2,397 ✭✭✭✭
    edited February 2016 #8
    Dave Angelini said:
    Hey Dave !  Still like that picture of your car out in the desert!  Reminds me of college in Phoenix and the great nights out in the desert.
    I still have dreams that I am not going to graduate.....The electric car must be great for your strategy.
    The Volts have worked out great the last, well almost 5 years now! WOW.  The 2012 has burned a total of 117 gallons since new and the wife's 2011 is much much less at about 26 gallons. Her car is all in town short trip and her fuel usage has been mostly just for fuel maintenance, which is an annual burn off for old fuel, or engine maintenance, which is a start every 6 weeks to oil the engine and bring it up to operating temps. Mine has had all the long trips, Vegas a couple times, Tucson and Sedona several times, etc.  They are absolutely the lowest cost to operate and maintain of any cars we have owned.  The are just now ready for their second oil change. The Solar really does make the the slogan "Drive for free, no OPEC fee!" Almost true. :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: 

    BTW we are now thinking about what preventive maintenance items to do increase the longevity of the cars so we can drive them till the doors fall off.  The electric motor regenerative charging makes the brakes look like brand new still. As nears as I can tell the batteries still perform as new and we get over 40 miles electric range even with the AC running on ECO.  I have to say that GM did the batteries right with the water cooling system. The range is helped by pre-starting the cars while still plugged in to either cool or heat them as needed off the 220V wall power.  The heater kills the range, AC less so.

    hehe on the dreams, I still have them of the first time ....  opps family board! LOL  :smile: 
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