CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — Advocates for rooftop solar installations are accusing NV Energy of trying to kill their industry.
Representatives from The Alliance for Solar Choice say Nevada's rooftop solar industry will die under the utility company's newly released proposed rates for net metering, which allows customers with solar panels at home to sell excess energy back to the utility.
They say that when the cost of leasing solar panels is factored in, solar customers might no longer be saving on overall energy costs.
NV Energy representatives say the proposed rate system would keep solar customers' bills about 33 percent lower than traditional customer bills.
That's not as deep a discount as solar customers get now, but NV Energy said it better reflects the actual costs of solar customers using the utility company's infrastructure.