Renewable Rewards^® Solar Credit FAQs

Yes. With one of our Renewable Rewards buyback plans, you receive credit for all the excess energy your solar energy system delivers to the grid. For the Renewable Rewards Solar Max plan, the rate per kWh you are credited for excess electricity is the real-time wholesale rate for your load zone, with no cap on the amount you can earn. Your excess electricity credits will show up on your electricity bill on the “Bill credit” line.

Please note that the Renewable Rewards Solar Max plan is only available for Texas residential customers who meet the plan requirements.

The electricity produced by your solar panels first powers your home. But when your panels produce more energy than you need, the remaining energy is delivered to the grid. For the Renewable Rewards Solar Credit plan, you’ll receive credits for this excess energy.

For the Renewable Rewards Solar Credit plan, you will receive a Renewable Rewards Credit on your bill for the excess energy delivered by your eligible renewable energy system to the grid over a monthly billing cycle. The credit amount will be determined by multiplying (a) the Renewable Rewards Credit per kWh found on your Electricity Facts Label by (b) the out-flow kWh quantity of excess energy reported by the TDSP over the applicable monthly billing cycle.

Renewable Rewards Credit amount = (Renewable Rewards Credit per kWh) x (out-flow kWh quantity of excess energy reported by the TDSP over the applicable monthly billing cycle)

No, there are no caps on excess energy credits. Customers enrolled on the Renewable Rewards Credit product that meet the eligibility requirements will receive credits for all excess energy delivered to the grid.

There are a few steps to take if you are not receiving excess energy credits:

1. Wait for three billing cycles after receiving Permission to Operate (PTO) from your utility.
2. If the issue persists, contact your solar installer to confirm that your solar array has passed inspection and you have a signed Interconnection Agreement with your utility.
3. If it has been more than three billing periods and your solar installer has completed the steps above, then reach out to Green Mountain Customer Care at 1-866-785-4668 to ask about your Renewable Rewards credits.

Yes. A Renewable Rewards customer’s existing credit balance carries over if they swap to a different plan with Green Mountain Energy.

Both your energy usage and solar production vary each month because of factors such as:

• Variable weather conditions—solar production is typically higher in the spring and summer.
• Changing usage patterns—usage is typically higher in the summer.
• Potential equipment malfunctions—if your system is underproducing, contact your solar installer.

There are a few different terms that describe energy your solar array produces and energy your house consumes, including:

• Solar production—the total electricity produced by your panels.
• Solar consumption—the solar energy used to power your home.
• Excess energy—any leftover solar energy delivered to the grid.
• Grid usage—energy pulled from the grid when your panels do not produce enough electricity to cover your needs.

For the Renewable Rewards Solar Credit plan, you receive credits for all excess energy delivered to the grid for each billing period.

Your Renewable Rewards Solar Credit bill shows:

• Your energy usage from the grid, or the inflow of electricity through your meter (shown on the “Energy Charge” line).
• The excess solar energy for which you are credited (shown on the “Renewable Rewards Credit” line).

Both your grid usage and your excess energy are measured by the meter installed by your utility. The bill does not show your total solar production, which may be measured by your solar monitor. This is because some of the solar power is immediately used by your house and never flows to the grid.

Contact your utility to learn more about interconnection to the grid and configuring your meter to separately measure the inflow and outflow of electricity from your home:

Oncor

Phone: 1-888-313-6862

Email: contactcenter@oncor.com

Contact page: https://www.oncor.com/SitePages/ContactUs.aspx

CenterPoint

Phone: 1-800-752-8036

Contact page: https://www.centerpointenergy.com/en-us/business/customer-service/contact-us

Texas New Mexico Power

Phone: 1-888-866-7456

Contact page: http://www.tnmp.com

AEP Central and AEP North

Phone: 1-877-373-4858

Contact page: https://www.aeptexas.com/contact/

If you have questions about your electricity bill or plan, call Green Mountain at 1-866-785-4668.

If you have questions about your solar panels or don’t think your system is producing as much power as it should, contact your installer.

The Renewable Rewards Buyback Program is available to new and existing residential customers in Texas who have installed home solar or small-scale wind systems with a capacity of 50 kW or less.

It’s pretty easy — just confirm the following requirements are met with your utility and solar installer:

1. Have a home solar or wind system with a rated capacity less than 50 kW.
2. Have an Interconnection Agreement in place with your utility.
3. Have a meter configured by your utility that separately measures the inflow and outflow of electricity to and from your home.
4. Enroll in a Renewable Rewards buyback plan.

Yes. You’ll need a meter configured by your utility that separately measures the inflow and outflow of electricity to and from your home. Your utility may charge for this meter, and these charges would be passed through to you on your Green Mountain bill.

Yes! Both current and new Green Mountain customers who meet the program requirements listed above can enroll in a Renewable Rewards buyback plan. If you’re a current Green Mountain customer enrolled in a plan with a cancellation fee, we will waive that fee if you would like to switch to a Renewable Rewards buyback plan, assuming all the requirements are met.

Existing Green Mountain customers in Texas can enroll by calling us at 1-866-785-4668 to switch their electricity plan to a Renewable Rewards buyback plan.

New customers in Texas can enroll in a Renewable Rewards buyback plan online, or by calling us at 1-866-301-3120.

You can enroll at any time, but to ensure that you receive credit for your excess solar energy as soon as possible, we recommend setting your enrollment date to be the same day you expect to receive Permission to Operate (PTO) from your utility. You can set your enrollment date for a Renewable Rewards buyback plan up to 60 days in advance.

It can take up to three billing cycles after you receive Permission to Operate (PTO) and are signed up on a Renewable Rewards buyback plan before excess energy credits appear on your bill. Both Green Mountain and your utility must make system changes to process your excess energy readings, and these changes take time to complete.