State net metering policies

State net metering rules provide an incentive for individuals and businesses to invest in their own small renewable energy systems by allowing them to sell excess power that they produce back into the grid.

More than 40 states, including Alaska, offer some form of net metering. Different rules in each state determine the maximum amount of power individual producers can sell back to the utility, the price at which the utility must purchase the power and the length of time an individual producer can “bank” the power they produce before a “net” bill must be calculated. 

Alaska’s net metering regulations, promulgated by the Regulatory Commission of Alaska in 2010, apply to renewable energy systems of 25 kW or less and require large utilities to purchase up to 1.5 percent of the utility’s average load from customers who install projects. (Homer Electric Association recently volunteered to raise this cap to 3 percent).

Customers receive an amount equal to what the utility is able to avoid spending on fuel and operations to generate the electricity.

The number of customer-built projects, particularly solar photovoltaic, is beginning to grow rapidly and at least one utility is projected to reach the 1.5 percent cap set by the Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA) sometime around 2022.

Alaska’s net metering regulations apply to renewable energy systems of 25 kW.

Related Resources

Alaska PolicyState Policy