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environmental

Frequently Asked Question

Q. How does net metering work?

A. A bi-directional meter is installed to measure the energy fed back into the electric grid. The digital meter will display the energy used by the home and energy sent into the grid.

The two readings will be subtracted from one another at the end of each month. If the customer generates more energy than they consume, the energy will carry over to the next month until it is used up. The customer will be paid at the end of the year for excess energy produced by his or her renewable system.

Example
 
Month 1:  
Energy used by home 1,250 kWh
Energy produced by renewable system* 1,500 kWh
Excess energy generated by renewable system 250 kWh
 
Net energy credited toward next month’s bill 250 kWh
 
Month 2:  
Energy used by home 1,250 kWh
Energy produced by renewable system* 1,100 kWh
Energy provided by Tampa Electric 150 kWh
 
Net energy credits from Month 1 250 kWh
Remaining credits toward next month’s bill 100 kWh
 
Month 3:  
Energy used by home 1,200 kWh
Energy produced by renewable system* 1,100 kWh
Energy provided by Tampa Electric 100 kWh
 
Net energy credits remaining from Month 2 100 kWh
Remaining credits toward next month’s bill 0 kWh


  • * The amount of energy that is actually generated by the renewable system is not metered by Tampa Electric. The meter shows energy that is sent to the customer and energy that is received from the customer. A net amount is calculated to determine if excess generation should be credited.
  • The customer always pays a monthly customer charge for his or her applicable rate even if there is zero consumption for the month.
  • At the end of the calendar year, customers are paid out for any remaining energy at the “As Available” rate (COG-1).