[EDIT 1/8/23: since the Final Decision that the CPUC approved last month was very different than their Preliminary Decision from December 2021 when I started this thread, much/most of the information in this post as well as the early pages of this thread are now outdated and incorrect. Rather than attempting to edit all of the information in this lead post, it will be more effective to skip this lead post and jump to the section of the thread where we discuss the Final Decision here; https://diysolarforum.com/threads/c...mers-and-what-to-do.32344/page-10#post-669325
Here s a link to the Final Decision itself: https://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/Efile/G000/M498/K526/498526033.PDF
And here is a link to a newer thread where the Final Decision is discussed in more depth:
I’ll insert a few more edits in bold below to correct the most significant changes on the Final Decision versus the Preliminary Decision this post was discussing.]
Since the CPUC is expected to issue it’s ‘decision’ on NEM3.0 this month, I figured I start a thread about the impact of the new NEM3.0 terms and whatever phase-in gets decided for existing NEM1.0 & NEM2.0 customers.
There are many changes being bandied about, but what the utilities are requesting is clear: https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/california-net-metering-changes
I’ll just focus on PG&E’s requested changes since those are the ones that impact me:
80% reduction in export credits
[EDIT: this is confirmed in the Final Decision but even worse - credits at midday a little as 13% of off-peak retail rates.]
Increase in monthly fixed charge from $10.00 to $20.66
[EDIT: Also confirmed in the Final Decision but appears to be $15/month rather than $20/month.]
New monthly ‘grid benefits charge’ of $10.93 per kW of installed solar panels
[EDIT: leveler heads prevailed and this ‘Solar Tax’ has been eliminated from the Final Decision.]
If I look at what that would mean for my 4kW array installed in 2016 when my annual electricity bill was $700/year, I’d be looking at minimum monthly charges of $20.66 + 4 x $10.93 = $64.38 or $773 annually.
Aside from absolutely killing any new installs, these terms being imposed on NEM1.0 like me and even NEM2.0 customers would cause me to decommission my system.
Of these 3 proposed changes, it is the new grid benefits charge which it the most serious.
[EDIT: this was correct and so it is great news that that most serious change has been removed from the Final Decision.]
I can adapt to an 80% reduction in export credit by storing most of my daily production in a battery and consuming it overnight. There will still be some export over summer which won’t be enough to cover the additional grid energy I need during winter, but thus can be compensated for by adding more off-grid panels to charge up the battery during winter months.
The increase in fixed monthly charges from $10.00 to $20.66 is annoying, but having you pay $248 per year to have the grid available to serve peak demand and provide power on overcast days is something I can live with (especially if it translates to a minimum amount of electricity I must pay for annually, as the $120/year minimum charges I pay currently are handled).
But that monthly per kW of installed solar panels is a showstopper. Would rather use my solar power to power an off-grid system to power s much of my load as I can and just pay my utility for whatever electricity I need to cover the remaining gaps.
[EDIT: again, that showstopper has been eliminated from the Final Decision.]
I’ve only invested in a small-size compensation-offset DC-coupled system based on cheap Chinese components this year because I am waiting for the new grandfathering rules to be clear before I invest in a longer-term system upgrade using higher-quality components (as well as to learn about DC-coupled solar, since my NEM1.0 system is AC-coupled based on Microinverters).
I obviously did not read the fine print carefully enough when I entered into my ‘20-year’ NEM1.0 agreement. Had no idea the CPUC could change terms on us whenever they felt the need.
There is also a high likelihood that whatever decision the CPUC puts out this month will result in lawsuits, so the actual rollout of whatever impact is coming will probably be delayed by at least a year if not 2.
But it seems likely that the new NEM3.0 rules are going to be a disincentive for any new domestic solar installs (and an incentive for us grandfathered installs to capture and use most of what we generate).
[EDIT: the Final Decision leaves NEM 1.0 and NEM 2,0 largely untouched. For new installs under NEM 3.0, the other important changes in the Final Decision were approval of PV arrays sized for up to 150% of annual production and continuation of an Annual TrueUp. With an array that size, NEM3.0 installations will just need to include an ESS sized to offset overnight consumption to make the economics pencil out (even with an 87% reduction in export credit for export of excess generation (after the House Battery has been fully-charged).]
Curious is how any other NEM1.0 or NEM2.0 customers plan to react to the new rules as they become clear…
[EDIT: Seems that no reaction by NEM 1.0 and NEM 2.0 customers is needed, though many are considering expanding their NEM 1.0 or NEM 2.0 systems before the NEM 2.0 Sunset Deadline April 2023 to get those system expansions in under NEM 2.0 rather than NEM 3.0….]
Here s a link to the Final Decision itself: https://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/Efile/G000/M498/K526/498526033.PDF
And here is a link to a newer thread where the Final Decision is discussed in more depth:
Revised CPUC plan: California’s New Solar Subsidy Plan Is Really About Batteries
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-10/california-regulators-soften-blow-of-solar-subsidy-rollback?leadSource=uverify%20wall California -- the biggest US solar market -- is poised to overhaul its landmark subsidy for rooftop panels to encourage homeowners to also install batteries...
diysolarforum.com
I’ll insert a few more edits in bold below to correct the most significant changes on the Final Decision versus the Preliminary Decision this post was discussing.]
Since the CPUC is expected to issue it’s ‘decision’ on NEM3.0 this month, I figured I start a thread about the impact of the new NEM3.0 terms and whatever phase-in gets decided for existing NEM1.0 & NEM2.0 customers.
There are many changes being bandied about, but what the utilities are requesting is clear: https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/california-net-metering-changes
I’ll just focus on PG&E’s requested changes since those are the ones that impact me:
80% reduction in export credits
[EDIT: this is confirmed in the Final Decision but even worse - credits at midday a little as 13% of off-peak retail rates.]
Increase in monthly fixed charge from $10.00 to $20.66
[EDIT: Also confirmed in the Final Decision but appears to be $15/month rather than $20/month.]
New monthly ‘grid benefits charge’ of $10.93 per kW of installed solar panels
[EDIT: leveler heads prevailed and this ‘Solar Tax’ has been eliminated from the Final Decision.]
If I look at what that would mean for my 4kW array installed in 2016 when my annual electricity bill was $700/year, I’d be looking at minimum monthly charges of $20.66 + 4 x $10.93 = $64.38 or $773 annually.
Aside from absolutely killing any new installs, these terms being imposed on NEM1.0 like me and even NEM2.0 customers would cause me to decommission my system.
Of these 3 proposed changes, it is the new grid benefits charge which it the most serious.
[EDIT: this was correct and so it is great news that that most serious change has been removed from the Final Decision.]
I can adapt to an 80% reduction in export credit by storing most of my daily production in a battery and consuming it overnight. There will still be some export over summer which won’t be enough to cover the additional grid energy I need during winter, but thus can be compensated for by adding more off-grid panels to charge up the battery during winter months.
The increase in fixed monthly charges from $10.00 to $20.66 is annoying, but having you pay $248 per year to have the grid available to serve peak demand and provide power on overcast days is something I can live with (especially if it translates to a minimum amount of electricity I must pay for annually, as the $120/year minimum charges I pay currently are handled).
But that monthly per kW of installed solar panels is a showstopper. Would rather use my solar power to power an off-grid system to power s much of my load as I can and just pay my utility for whatever electricity I need to cover the remaining gaps.
[EDIT: again, that showstopper has been eliminated from the Final Decision.]
I’ve only invested in a small-size compensation-offset DC-coupled system based on cheap Chinese components this year because I am waiting for the new grandfathering rules to be clear before I invest in a longer-term system upgrade using higher-quality components (as well as to learn about DC-coupled solar, since my NEM1.0 system is AC-coupled based on Microinverters).
I obviously did not read the fine print carefully enough when I entered into my ‘20-year’ NEM1.0 agreement. Had no idea the CPUC could change terms on us whenever they felt the need.
There is also a high likelihood that whatever decision the CPUC puts out this month will result in lawsuits, so the actual rollout of whatever impact is coming will probably be delayed by at least a year if not 2.
But it seems likely that the new NEM3.0 rules are going to be a disincentive for any new domestic solar installs (and an incentive for us grandfathered installs to capture and use most of what we generate).
[EDIT: the Final Decision leaves NEM 1.0 and NEM 2,0 largely untouched. For new installs under NEM 3.0, the other important changes in the Final Decision were approval of PV arrays sized for up to 150% of annual production and continuation of an Annual TrueUp. With an array that size, NEM3.0 installations will just need to include an ESS sized to offset overnight consumption to make the economics pencil out (even with an 87% reduction in export credit for export of excess generation (after the House Battery has been fully-charged).]
Curious is how any other NEM1.0 or NEM2.0 customers plan to react to the new rules as they become clear…
[EDIT: Seems that no reaction by NEM 1.0 and NEM 2.0 customers is needed, though many are considering expanding their NEM 1.0 or NEM 2.0 systems before the NEM 2.0 Sunset Deadline April 2023 to get those system expansions in under NEM 2.0 rather than NEM 3.0….]
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