Net Energy Metering (NEM) FAQ
Find answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Net Energy Metering.
Important Updates
NEM 2.0 applications that were submitted by the April 14, 2023, deadline are being reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis to ensure minimum document requirements are met. Due to a record volume of NEM applications, reviews may take more than 30 business days. Valid applications (with no major issues) are eligible for NEM 2.0. If we find an issue, we will notify you of the next steps and options.
| NEM 2.0 applications currently being reviewed |
Applications submitted on or before: |
| 03/29/2023* |
*This status is updated three (3) times per week (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) and was last updated on 06/07/2023 at 2:00 p.m.
We will continue to post updates as we review applications. If you submitted your application before the date referenced above and have not yet received a notification, please reach out to your contractor for a status update.
If you submitted your application and all required documents, free of any major deficiencies, by 11:59 p.m. PST on April 14, 2023, you made the deadline, and you are eligible for NEM 2.0.
If we received your application by the deadline, we sent you and/or your contractor a confirmation email letting you know we received it.
If you missed the deadline, you will not have an opportunity to apply for NEM 2.0, unless you have a Virtual NEM or NEM Aggregation project. However, you can apply for SCE’s Solar Billing Plan, a new program available to customers who install eligible renewable generating systems, such as solar or wind.
Net Energy Metering (NEM) is available to SCE customers who produce their own electricity through an eligible renewable generating system. The NEM option allows you to receive credit(s) for the surplus electricity you supply to the electric grid. This credit is applied to your energy bill to offset all or part of the costs associated with the energy you consume from the grid each month.
Once enrolled in the NEM program, SCE uses a bi-directional meter to track the amount of electricity exported to the grid by your generating system as well as the amount of electricity you consume from the power grid during each billing period. SCE will then calculate the “net” difference between your consumption and the exported energy to determine the final charges for your electricity.
To enroll in NEM, you need to meet certain criteria:
- Install NEM-eligible renewable energy system, e.g., solar PV, wind, fuel cell, etc. (the generating system’s capacity must be sized to the customer’s onsite historical usage).
- Have a compatible meter. Customers with a SMART meter already meet this requirement, although the meter must still be programmed by SCE. Customers that prefer not to have a SMART meter (opt-out customers) may have other metering options (subject to availably by region and inventory).
- The generating system must be sized to offset, but not exceed the customer’s onsite usage. In general, SCE estimates the annual generation (kWh) of your proposed system size and compares it to the previous 12 months of your kWh usage history.
To apply for NEM:
- An application must be submitted using SCE's NEM Online Interconnection Application System. There is a one-time application fee of $94 for projects up to 1 MW and $800 for projects greater than 1 MW.
- Once approved, SCE will issue a “Permission to Operate” (or PTO) to authorize the operation of the generating system. You’ll be able to turn the system on and your account will then be set-up to reflect NEM approval.
NEM customers are required to take service on a Time-of-Use (TOU) rate. If you are not already on a TOU rate, your account will be defaulted to TOU-D-4-9. To learn more about the available TOU rate options, please click here.
Although processing times may vary based on application volume, simple and standard interconnection requests that are received with all required documentation can typically receive PTO within a couple of business days. Complex interconnection requests will need more time to process as they require additional technical and engineering review.
We strongly recommend that you or your contractor submit the application, Single Line Diagram, signed Interconnection Agreement, final electrical permit approval issued by the local building department, and any other applicable documentation all at once to expedite the review of your interconnection request. This allows ample time for us to evaluate program eligibility, conduct a technical review of the proposed system and initiate a meter change, if necessary. If a meter change is required, we will arrange the installation with our local planning department before PTO is issued.
To protect consumers installing solar electric systems and participating in the NEM program, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the State Legislature have put into place measures designed to help customers make a more fully informed decision about installing solar on their single-family homes. These measures include a requirement that solar consumers review and sign a Solar Consumer Protection Guide that ensures the consumer knows their rights and has enough information regarding the various factors they should consider when installing solar at their home. This requirement does not apply to self-install or new construction projects.
The Service Account holder should sign and initial the Consumer Protection Guide. If the name on the contract, consumer guide and NEM agreement are not the same across all three documents, SCE will require an explanation of the relationship between the parties signing each document uploaded with the consumer guide.
Anyone authorized to sign on behalf of the solar provider qualifies as a company representative. Consult an attorney if you have any questions.
If your storage device is paired with a NEM eligible generator (e.g., solar, wind, etc.), an Interconnection Application will need to be submitted.
Please Note: If the energy storage device is not paired with an NEM generator, then the interconnection application must be submitted to the Grid Interconnection and Contract Development (GICD) team as a Rule 21 Non-Export project. For questions regarding the GICD application process, please send an email to InterconnectionQA@sce.com.
There are currently no applicable restrictions related to the sizing for energy storage devices paired to NEM generators. The 150% rule originally outlined in the NEM Tariff has been suspended through August 2023.
Please note that rebate programs such as the Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) may have a different sizing requirement for the energy storage device. As such, you will need to ensure that the size of the storage device meets both the NEM tariff and rebate program requirements to qualify and take advantage of both programs.
Generally, battery systems in a NEM-Paired Storage (NEM-PS) agreement are charged by a renewable generator i.e., solar, wind, etc., but are not permitted to charge from the grid.
To learn more about how to read your NEM bill statement, please visit on.sce.com/nembillcalc.
Accounts with Permission to Operate are typically set-up for NEM billing within a few billing cycles, however, we are experiencing delays in some instances where SCE is unable to reprogram or replace the existing meter. Your non-NEM bill will still track the amount of electricity used from the electric grid but will not reflect the surplus energy credit(s) supplied to the electric grid, until the issue is resolved. The credit(s) for the surplus energy you supply to the electric grid will appear on your first NEM bill. For billing inquiries, please contact SCE Customer Service at 866-701-7868 for NEM residential customers or 866-701-7869 for NEM business customers. To learn more about how to read your NEM bill statement, please visit on.sce.com/nembillcalc.
For billing inquiries please contact SCE Customer Service at 866-701-7868 for NEM residential customers or 866-701-7869 for NEM business customers.
DA and CCA customers are eligible to participate in NEM if the Energy Service Provider (ESP) or CCA agrees to support the NEM provisions of the NEM rate. The ESP or CCA must provide their agreement to support these provisions before your associated accounts can/will be placed on NEM. SCE will be responsible for delivery credits (if applicable), and your ESP or CCA will be responsible for any corresponding generation credits. DA and CCA customers are not eligible for Net Surplus Compensation.
If your ESP or CCA declines to support NEM, you have several options:
- You may choose to remain with your service provider, forego being served on NEM, and benefit from the usage reduction from the system.
- You may choose to switch to a different ESP that offers NEM.
- You may choose to return to bundled service.
- Where CCAs and ESPs have their own NEM programs, they still must go through our interconnection process and receive permission to operate their generating facility from SCE.
Note: SCE cannot speak for the ESP or CCA and cannot discuss the ESP’s or CCA’s reason(s) for declining to support NEM or NEM Aggregation. If you have any further questions, please contact your ESP or CCA.
GMAs offer certain NEM customers an alternative interconnection option to traditional supply-side connections (also called “line-side taps”). They eliminate the need to make modifications to your meter panel, which may help reduce the overall cost and time of your renewable generating facility installation. They provide a safer installation compared to the traditional line-side taps by eliminating the need to enter or modify the service panel. For more information, please refer to the GMA Fact Sheet.
This will be considered a line-side connection. Cities and AHJs may have various requirements regarding line-side connections, however, once the GMA is approved by SCE, most AHJs will accept the installation of SCE-owned equipment. Please ask your contractor to work with your city or AHJ to determine if the GMA is an approved method for interconnecting.
Yes, the GMA is SCE-owned and becomes part of the metering services. However, the neutral pigtail is the white wire included in the GMA. SCE makes the connections to the GMA, including the Neutral to the customer’s panel. If needed, the Contractor may assist with the Neutral.
If you have multiple electric accounts on the same property as the renewable generator or property is contiguous or adjacent to that property, you can install a generator up to the aggregated load of all accounts, so long as all of the properties are solely owned, leased or rented by you. You must also be the customer of record on all SCE accounts.
Please submit the completed NEM application via the online portal and include the NEM-A Form 14-937 listing both the generating and benefiting accounts in addition to a parcel map to verify the parcels are adjacent and contiguous. Additional documents may be required. Please refer to the NEM Application Checklist.
For the purposes of Form 14-937, parcels that are divided by a street, highway, or public thoroughfare are considered contiguous, provided they are within an unbroken chain of otherwise contiguous parcels and are all solely owned, leased or rented by the Customer, as verified in Form 14-937.