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New Hampshire Net Metering
In this section you will find information pertaining to common questions about net metering.
Net Metering
The Eversource Net Metering program is a renewable rate program available to customers using their own renewable energy source to generate electricity.
If you are installing distributed generation (e.g., solar panels), or already have a renewable generator, you may be eligible for net metering, a billing method that provides a monetary credit for any surplus energy produced by a customer’s generating facility.
If you are a customer applying for electrical interconnection, and you want to be considered for net metering, your application to connect is all you need to apply for net metering.
The NH law and its regulations that authorizes utilities to offer net metering ( RSA 362-A:9) define two types of projects:
- Small projects are those no greater than 100 kilowatts (kW).
- Large projects are greater than 100 kW up to 1,000 kW.
Projects greater than 1,000 kW are not eligible for net metering.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Net Metering?
Net Metering refers to a renewable energy incentive program created by the New Hampshire Legislature. Customers who install eligible generation sources on their property can use the generation to reduce their energy consumption and earn a credit for any surplus energy produced.
Who is eligible to participate?
Net metering is available to any Eversource customer who owns or operates an electricity-generating facility powered by renewable energy, with a total peak generating capacity of not more than 1,000 kilowatts.
The renewable energy generator must be located behind a retail meter on your premises, be interconnected and operate in parallel with the electric grid.
Do I need to own the generator to be eligible?
No. Third-party ownership is acceptable. The law establishing this program (RSA 362-A) requires that you "own or operate or purchase power from" the generator. In addition, the law requires that the generator be located "on the customer's premises."
What types of generation are considered renewable?
"Renewable energy" means electricity produced by renewable resources, including geothermal, tidal or wave, wind, solar, landfill gas, hydro, biomass, bio-oil, bio-synthetic gas, and biodiesel resources. In addition, the program is open to generators that employ a combined heat and power (CHP) system as defined in RSA 362-A:1-a, II-d.
Is a special type of meter required?
Yes. Eversource will replace your existing meter with a “net meter” (at no charge). The net meter has two measurement channels: The purchase channel measures all energy delivered into your property; the sale channel measures any surplus energy that is exported from your property back onto the Eversource system.
The net meter is read by Eversource approximately once per month, and the following three billing kilowatt hour quantities are determined:
- Gross Purchases – The total kilowatt hour (kWh) quantity of energy imported into the property during the month as measured by the purchase channel of the meter.
- Net Purchases – This equals Gross Purchases minus any surplus energy measured in the sale channel of the meter. For billing purposes, this quantity is never less than zero kWh.
- Net Sales (i.e., Surplus) – Whenever the quantity of energy measured by the sales channel exceeds the quantity measured by the purchase channel, the difference is known as “net sales” or “surplus” energy.
How is my Eversource bill impacted by the installation of net metered generation?
This question has two answers, depending on the size of the installed generator:
Small Customer Generators: Installations with a peak generating capacity of 100 kW and less are referred to as small customer generators.
The Gross Purchase quantity (defined above) is used to assess certain, non-bypassable charges on the bill, namely the Stranded Cost Recovery Charge, the System Benefits Charge, and the Electricity Consumption Tax.
The Net Purchase quantity (if greater than zero) is used to assess the Energy Supply Charge, the Distribution Charge, and the Transmission Charge.
Here is a sample bill (PDF) for a small customer generator when the purchase kWh exceeds the sales kWh.
Each kilowatt hour of Net Sales will earn a monetary bill credit equal to the sum of the Default Energy Service charge, the Transmission Charge, plus 25 percent of the Distribution Charge. Customers who take energy supply service from a competitive retail supplier are not eligible for the Default Energy Service portion of this credit.
Here is a sample bill (PDF) for a small customer generator when the sale kWh exceeds the purchase kWh.
All customer charges (i.e., flat rate portions of the bill) are unaffected, and all demand-based charges (if applicable) will continue to reflect the peak kilowatt usage during the billing month (as measured by the purchase channel).
Large Customer Generators: Installations with a peak generating capacity of greater than 100 kW up to 1,000 kW are referred to as large customer generators.
All bill charges that are based on kilowatt-hours will be assessed on the Gross Purchase kilowatt hour quantity.
Each kilowatt hour of sales (measured in the sale channel of the meter) will earn a monetary bill credit equal to the Default Energy Service charge. Customers who take energy supply service from a competitive retail supplier are not eligible for the Default Energy Service credit.
All customer charges (i.e., flat rate portions of the bill) are unaffected, and all demand-based charges (if applicable) will continue to reflect the peak kilowatt usage during the billing month (as measured by the purchase channel).
Can I participate in Eversource's budget billing program?
No. Due to constraints with our billing systems, we are not able to offer budget billing to net metered customers. If you have any questions or you would like information regarding flexible payment arrangements, please contact Customer Service at 800-662-7764.
Is a customer able to receive a payment (e.g., cash or check) for the monetary credit for surplus energy that accumulates on the billing account?
Yes, but only in limited circumstances. A customer who closes an account (e.g., moves to a new property) may request a payment for a credit balance on the account. Otherwise, customers may only request a payment once per year, following the March billing cycle, provided that the accumulated credit balance is in excess of $100.
Should I talk with my retail energy supplier about my decision to install generation on my property?
Eversource recommends that any customer taking energy service from a competitive energy supplier inform their supplier of the presence of any existing or proposed on-site generation. At a minimum, you should refer to your contract with the supplier to see if on-site generation is mentioned in the contract terms and conditions. Also, as noted above, certain portions of the credit for surplus energy production are not applicable to customers who use a retail energy supplier.
Can I use some of the excess solar power on one account to reduce the Eversource bill on a second account?
Net metering applies to a generator behind a single retail meter (also known as a service account). Eversource will not transfer surplus solar credits from one account to another account. However, in some situations it may be possible to combine multiple service accounts into a single billing account. In that case, a net metering surplus credit on one service account will effectively lower the total payment due on the combined billing account. A customer may also elect to register as a Group, described below.
How do I apply for the net metering program?
If you're interested in installing renewable generation, please visit our Application to Connect page. Eversource will review the information to ensure the generator can safely be connected and operate in parallel with the Eversource electric distribution system.
The approved application will be returned typically in less than one week. After you've installed the generator, a Certificate of Completion must be delivered to Eversource.
The form requires a signature from the town electrical inspector. If the town does not have an electrical inspector, a New Hampshire licensed electrician must approve the installation.
Once Eversource reviews the completed certificate, a meter technician will visit your property to install a new meter. Once the proper meter has been installed, you will receive email notification from Eversource that you are officially enrolled in the program (normally, this occurs within 10 days).
No operation of the generator is permitted until all steps are completed. Eversource is not responsible for improper billing that may result whenever a customer operates a generator prior to the proper meter being installed.
Is there an application fee or other costs to enter the net metering program?
There is no application fee. For most small systems that interconnect to Eversource via an IEEE, UL-approved inverter, there is no fee of any kind.
For systems larger than 10 kW and non-inverter-based systems, there is a fee for engineering man-hours required to evaluate the impact of the equipment on the Eversource system.
Also, if the property requires an upgraded service (i.e., a larger service transformer) to accommodate the new generation, the cost of that equipment will be charged to the customer.
What should I do if I want to upgrade or modify my renewable generating equipment?
You must notify Eversource in writing if any of the facility information submitted on the original application is modified. Examples include: increase in generation capacity, inverter replacement, or relays for a non-inverter facility that are upgraded, replaced, or rewired.
What is a group host?
In 2013, RSA 362 was amended to create a new way to promote renewable energy. A customer-generator may elect to become a group host to reduce or control the energy costs of a group of customers who are not customer-generators.
The group of customers must all be Eversource customers. The group host provides a list of the group members to the New Hampshire Public Utility Commission (NHPUC) and Eversource, and must certify that all members of the group have executed an agreement with the host regarding the utilization of kilowatt hours produced by the eligible facility. The group host also must certify that the total historic annual load of the group members, together with the host, exceeds the projected annual output of the host's facility.
Once the NHPUC verifies that these group requirements have been met, they will register the group host. The Commission establishes the process for registering hosts, including periodic re-registration, and the process by which changes in membership are allowed and administered.
How is a group host credited on their electric bill for the power they export to the Eversource system?
A group host will be paid for its surplus generation at the end of each billing cycle at rates consistent with the credit the group host receives relative to its own net metering. On an annual basis, Eversource will calculate a payment adjustment if the host's surplus generation for which it was paid is greater than the group's total electricity usage during the same time period.
The adjustment will be such that the resulting compensation to the host for the amount that exceeded the group's total usage will be at Eversource’s avoided cost rate.
The adjustment does not apply to residential systems with an interconnected capacity under 15 kilowatts.
Please note, all payments to group hosts are considered taxable income under IRS rules, and a 1099 form will be issued annually to each group host.
Renewable Energy Certificates
If you have installed, or are considering installing, solar panels or another form of renewable energy at your home or small business, you may be eligible to earn Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs).