Understanding Your Bill Under Net Metering

Please note that if you are thinking of installing a battery under the Home Renovation Savings Program, you are not permitted to use net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months.. Instead, learn about load displacementA solar system configuration where any excess power sent to the grid does not receive hydro bill credits. Because exported electricity provides no financial benefit, these systems often include battery storage to capture surplus energy for later use rather than sending it to the grid without compensation..

Net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. allows homeowners in Ontario to generate electricity with solar panels and, in a way, use the grid as a battery. When your solar panels produce more electricity than your home needs, the excess is sent to the grid and recorded as a credit on your hydro bill. When your home needs more electricity than your solar system can provide, you draw from the grid and those previously earned credits are used. Over the course of the year, the electricity you export during high-production months helps offset the electricity you import during lower-production months, allowing solar to reduce your annual electricity costs.

Each billing period, your hydro company calculates the net difference between how much electricity your solar system produces and how much your home consumes:

• If you generate more electricity than you use, the excess is recorded as a credit measured in kilowattA unit of power that describes the size of a solar system. System size is calculated by adding up the wattage of each panel and converting to kilowatts.-hours (kWh).
• If you use more electricity than you generate, you pay only for the difference.

All major utilities in the GTHA participate in Ontario's net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. program, including Toronto Hydro, Alectra (serving Mississauga, Brampton, Markham and Vaughan), Oakville Hydro, Burlington Hydro and Milton Hydro.

Net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. is especially important in Canada and in Ontario in particular, because solar production varies significantly by season. Solar systems generate much more electricity in the summer months, when days are longer and the sun is higher in the sky and far less electricity in the winter. While batteries can store enough electricity over short periods of time (overnight or over a few days), they cannot store all the extra electricity your solar system made in the summer for you to use in the winter.

Net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. solves this challenge by allowing excess electricity produced in the summer to be credited and used later in the year. This effectively spreads the value of summer solar production across all seasons, allowing solar systems to reduce annual electricity costs despite seasonal differences in sunlight. Without net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months., solar would be far less practical for most Ontario homes. In short, net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. is what makes residential solar work in our northern latitude.

Even with solar panels and net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months., you will continue to have to pay a hydro bill. While solar production can offset the electricity you consume, delivery fees, regulatory charges and other fixed fees still apply each month. As a result, even homes with high solar offset will not see a zero-dollar bill. The primary financial benefit of solar comes from lowering the energy portion of your hydro bills over the course of the year.

If your solar system produces more electricity than your home is using, the excess is sent to the grid and recorded as a credit measured in kilowattA unit of power that describes the size of a solar system. System size is calculated by adding up the wattage of each panel and converting to kilowatts.-hours (kWh). These credits are recorded on your hydro bill and applied to it in order to offset electricity you draw from the grid when your solar system is not producing enough, such as at night, on cloudy days or during lower-production months. Credits reduce the energy portion of your hydro bill on a kWh-for-kWh basis, while delivery, regulatory and other fixed charges still apply.

Under Ontario's net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. program, net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. credits carry forward from one billing period to the next and can be used to offset electricity you draw from the grid later in the year. Net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. credits remain valid for up to 12 months from the date they are earned. If credits are not used within that 12-month period, they expire and are removed from your account. For this reason, solar systems in Ontario must be sized to closely match annual electricity use rather than significantly exceed it.

The credits you earn through net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. do not convert directly to money, so you will not be paid out in cash. Instead, they remain on your hydro bill and are used to offset future electricity you import from the grid. For example, if your solar system generates 200 kWh more than you used in July, that 200 kWh is added to your existing credit balance. As additional credits are earned in subsequent months, your total credit balance increases. Once you reach a month where your electricity use exceeds your solar production (typically in October or November) your accumulated credits start to be used and the balance starts to decrease.

If your system is designed to achieve close to 100% annual offset, your net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. credits are generally used up by the end of winter as solar production begins to increase again in the spring. If a system is oversized, excess credits may remain after winter. The credits you earned last spring will exceed the 12-month validity period before you can use them. For this reason, solar is designed to offset electricity consumption rather than generate income and consistently large surplus credits usually indicate that a system is larger than necessary.

If your system is installed in the fall or winter, it is normal to see diminished savings, as solar production is lowest during these months. As days get longer and solar production increases in the spring and summer, savings become more noticeable. Solar should be viewed as a long-term investment, with benefits that accumulate over time rather than appearing immediately in low-production months.

After your solar system is installed, your hydro bill will look similar to before. The energy portion of your hydro bill will now reflect the net difference between how much electricity your home used and how much your solar system produced during the billing period. If your solar system generated more electricity than you used, a credit is carried forward on your hydro bill. If you used more electricity than your solar system produced, you are billed only for the remaining difference after credits are applied. Fixed charges such as delivery, regulatory and other non-energy fees continue to apply on your hydro bill each month.

• It's not cash back: Credits reduce future hydro bills but are not paid out in cash.
• It's not a fixed guarantee: Savings vary based on your electricity use and your solar system's production.
• It's not the same as Ontario's former microFIT program: Net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. offsets consumption, while microFIT paid homeowners directly for electricity production.
• It's not immediate: Solar savings are realized over the course of a year, not necessarily on every monthly bill.
• It's not unlimited: Unused credits expire after 12 months.
• It's not designed for profit: Net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. is intended to offset household electricity use, not generate income.
• It's not the same as battery storageA system that stores solar electricity for later use, typically during power outages. Batteries are optional and are not required for net-metered solar systems.: Net meteringA solar system configuration that allows excess solar electricity to be sent to the grid in exchange for hydro bill credits. These credits can then be used to offset future electricity imports. In Ontario, unused credits expire after 12 months. essentially smooths out the benefit of solar energy production over the whole year, while batteries store energy over hours or days.