Residential Renewable Energy Solutions

Summary

NOTE: In May 2018, S.B. 9 signed into law and made significant changes to the state's Renewable Portfolio Standard and Net Metering policies. The law ends net metering to new customers when the Residential Solar Investment Program ends on January 1, 2022. The existing net metering customers will be grandfathered until December 2039. Starting January 1, 2022, new customers will be able to select a buy-all, sell-all option, or net billing option under the new Net-Tariff program. The Public Utilities Regulator Authority (PURA) has finished implementing the new program as the Residential Renewable Energy Solutions Program. Non-residential customers can participate in the Non-Residential Renewable Energy Solutions Program.

Connecticut’s two investor-owned utilities, Eversource and United Illuminating, are required to offer two kinds of tariffs to new customers who own Class I renewable energy resources, which include solar, wind, landfill gas, fuel cells, sustainable biomass, ocean-thermal power, wave or tidal power, low-emission advanced renewable-energy conversion technologies, and hydropower facilities up to two megawatts (MW) in capacity. Beginning in 2023, energy storage paired with solar is also eligible, but only for the Buy-All tariff.

There is no stated limit on the aggregate capacity of net-metered systems in a utility's service territory. Any net excess generation (NEG) during a monthly billing period is carried over to the following month as a kilowatt-hour (kWh) credit for one year. At the end of the year (March 31), the utility pays the customer for any remaining NEG at the avoided cost of wholesale power.

Residential Renewable Energy Solutions offers new residential installations installed after January 1st, 2022 the opportunity to sell the energy and renewable energy certificates (RECs) at a fixed 20-year price by selecting one of two incentive rate structures: 1) Buy-all or 2) Netting. Under the Buy-All incentive rate structure, the utility will purchase all energy and RECs generated by the facility. Under the Netting incentive rate structure, the utility will purchase all RECs generated by the facility, and any energy exported to the grid that is not consumed on-site. Customers receive monetary on-bill credits for the exported energy equal to their retail rate. Customers who installed solar before December 31st, 2021 will maintain their net metering contract until 2039.

Multifamily master-metered properties -- properties where utility bills are paid by the landlord/property owner, and tenants do not have a relationship with the utility -- are eligible for the Buy-All rate, but not the Netting rate. The financial benefits of participation must be passed onto tenants via qualified building upgrades.

Customers are locked into their rate for 20 years. The Buy-All and Netting rates are reviewed for changes annually, but these changes only affect new customers; a customer will keep the rate of their entry year for the entirety of the 20-year contract. New customers can enroll through 2027. Residential customers that choose the Netting option must also pay a non-bypassable charge beginning in 2024. The following incentive rates will be in effect for eligible applications received in 2024:

Qualified facilities serving customers with incomes 60% or below the State Median Income are eligible to receive the Low-Income Adder. Facilities located in Economically Distressed Municipalities are eligible to receive the Distressed Municipality Adder. Qualified facilities are only eligible for one adder and cannot receive both adders. Adders must be applied for during the application process and cannot be added or removed later if a customer’s income status changes. In 2022, PURA updated the program rules to allow utilities to automatically enroll customers who are eligible for either adder if the customer does not sign up when applying. Adders are applied to net generation at the Production Meter for both the Buy-All Tariff and netting Tariff.