Virginia Net Metering Rules and Regulation (2024)

Key Factors

• Web Metering Advantages in Virginia: In Virginia, internet metering permits photo voltaic system homeowners to obtain credit on their electrical payments for surplus vitality contributed to the grid. Ruled by Virginia code §56-594, tips apply to investor-owned utilities (Dominion and Appalachian Energy) and electrical cooperatives, with smaller municipal utilities having non-obligatory participation.
• Compensation and Billing Insurance policies: Compensation in Virginia operates on a one-to-one retail price for residential prospects (beneath 25 kW) and non-residential prospects (as much as 3,000 kW). Photo voltaic techniques, usually designed to not exceed annual consumption, provide choices for credit score rollover or fee on the averted price price for extra vitality inside a 12-month interval.
• Different Web Metering Choices and Advocacy: Virginia gives various internet metering choices like Mixture Web Metering for farmers to credit score surplus photo voltaic manufacturing. Digital Web Metering is progressing for group photo voltaic and tenant aggregation. Advocacy consists of supporting the Virginia Declaration of Photo voltaic Rights and submitting complaints with the State Company Fee for difficult decisions.

What’s Web Metering?

Web metering in Virginia permits people with photo voltaic vitality techniques to obtain credit on their electrical payments for the vitality they generate. This coverage acknowledges and compensates customers for the excess vitality contributed to the grid by their photo voltaic installations.

Web Metering Tips in Virginia

• Residential System Capability Restrict: 25 kW
• Non-residential System Capability Restrict: 3,000 kW
• Agricultural System Capability Restrict: 500 kW (aggregated capability)
• Month-to-month Extra Technology Credit score Fee: Full retail
• Annual Extra Technology Credit Score Fee: Averted price
• State-wide Web Metering Cap for Investor-Owned Utilities (Dominion & APCO): Six % of the utility’s peak load from the earlier year (together with a 1% Low-to-Center-Earnings carve-out)
• State-wide Web Metering Cap for Electrical Cooperative Utilities: Seven % of the utility’s peak load from the earlier yr
• Insurance Policies Increasing Web Metering: Introduction of Mixture Web Metering for Farmers

The rules outlined in Virginia code §56-594 govern the implementation of internet metering throughout the Commonwealth. Whereas the state’s investor-owned utilities (Dominion and Appalachian Energy) and electrical cooperatives are mandated to stick to the rules laid out in §56-594, smaller municipal utilities have the choice to take part.

Compensation and Billing

Billing and Compensation in Virginia function on a foundation the place residential prospects obtain compensation at a one-to-one retail price for the photo voltaic vitality they contribute to the electrical grid, on condition that their system dimension is beneath 25 kW. Non-residential prospects, together with industrial entities, are additionally compensated at a one-to-one retail price, with a system dimension restriction of three,000 kW. Sometimes, in Virginia, photo voltaic techniques are designed to not exceed a buyer’s annual consumption. Whereas some prospects might select to oversize their techniques for future wants like the acquisition of an electrical car or different useful electrification, producing extra photo voltaic vitality inside a 12-month interval permits prospects to both roll over the credit score or obtain a fee on the averted price, relying on utility guidelines.

Different Web Metering Choices in Virginia

• Mixture Web Metering: Virginia farmers have the chance to interact in mixture internet metering. This association permits the excess photo voltaic manufacturing from one meter or construction to be credited to a different one.
• Digital Web Metering: Virginia is in the course of constructing digital internet metering accessible to certain photo voltaic prospects (as of August 2020). This initiative encompasses each group’s photo voltaic and tenant aggregation. Whereas Dominion affords a group photo voltaic program, it’s important to notice that this program doesn’t allow people to personalize or develop their very own shared photo voltaic amenities. Additional info on group photo voltaic could be explored for a greater understanding of this system.

Extra Coverage Assets for Virginia

Keep knowledgeable about photo voltaic and renewable vitality coverage developments in Virginia by way of the Power for the People VA blog, a wonderful useful resource that summarizes key updates. Moreover, discover the Virginia Distributed Solar Alliance, a group comprising people and representatives from grassroots organizations, trade, finance, and authorized establishments. This alliance shares a standard imaginative and prescient of empowering all Virginia communities to profit from the vitality selection, job creation, and grid resilience inherent in the photo voltaic distributed era.