IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/enepol/v85y2015icp115-125.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Regulatory and ratemaking approaches to mitigate financial impacts of net-metered PV on utilities and ratepayers

Author

Listed:
  • Satchwell, Andrew
  • Mills, Andrew
  • Barbose, Galen

Abstract

The financial interests of U.S. utilities are poorly aligned with customer-sited solar photovoltaics (PV) under traditional regulation. Customer-sited PV, especially under a net-metering arrangement, may result in revenue erosion and lost earnings opportunities for utility shareholders as well as increases in average retail rates for utility ratepayers. Regulators are considering alternative regulatory and ratemaking approaches to mitigate these financial impacts. We performed a scoping analysis using a financial model to quantify the efficacy of mitigation approaches in reducing financial impacts of customer-sited PV on utility shareholders and ratepayers. We find that impacts can be mitigated through various incremental changes to utility regulatory and business models, though the efficacy varies considerably depending on design and particular utility circumstances. Based on this analysis, we discuss tradeoffs policymakers should consider, which ultimately might need to be resolved within broader policy contexts.

Suggested Citation

  • Satchwell, Andrew & Mills, Andrew & Barbose, Galen, 2015. "Regulatory and ratemaking approaches to mitigate financial impacts of net-metered PV on utilities and ratepayers," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 115-125.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:85:y:2015:i:c:p:115-125
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2015.05.019
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421515002128
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.enpol.2015.05.019?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Carter, Sheryl, 2001. "Breaking The Consumption Habit: Ratemaking for Efficient Resource Decisions," The Electricity Journal, Elsevier, vol. 14(10), pages 66-74, December.
    2. Eto, Joseph & Stoft, Steven & Belden, Timothy, 1997. "The theory and practice of decoupling utility revenues from sales," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 6(1), pages 43-55, March.
    3. Satchwell, Andrew & Mills, Andrew & Barbose, Galen, 2015. "Quantifying the financial impacts of net-metered PV on utilities and ratepayers," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 133-144.
    4. Richter, Mario, 2013. "German utilities and distributed PV: How to overcome barriers to business model innovation," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 456-466.
    5. Moskovitz, David & Harrington, Cheryl & Austin, Tom, 1992. "Weighing decoupling vs. lost revenues: Regulatory considerations," The Electricity Journal, Elsevier, vol. 5(9), pages 58-63, November.
    6. Satchwell, Andrew & Cappers, Peter & Goldman, Charles, 2011. "Carrots and sticks: A comprehensive business model for the successful achievement of energy efficiency resource standards," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 218-225.
    7. Richter, Mario, 2013. "Business model innovation for sustainable energy: German utilities and renewable energy," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1226-1237.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Oliva H., Sebastian, 2017. "Residential energy efficiency and distributed generation - Natural partners or competition?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 932-940.
    2. Comello, Stephen & Reichelstein, Stefan, 2017. "Cost competitiveness of residential solar PV: The impact of net metering restrictions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 46-57.
    3. L. (Lisa B.) Ryan & Sarah La Monaca & Linda Mastrandrea & Petr Spodniak, 2018. "Harnessing electricity retail tariffs to support climate change policy," Open Access publications 10197/9911, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    4. Rutovitz, Jay & Oliva H., Sebastian & McIntosh, Lawrence & Langham, Ed & Teske, Sven & Atherton, Alison & Kelly, Scott, 2018. "Local network credits and local electricity trading: Results of virtual trials and the policy implications," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 324-334.
    5. Castaneda, Monica & Franco, Carlos J. & Dyner, Isaac, 2017. "Evaluating the effect of technology transformation on the electricity utility industry," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 341-351.
    6. Cole, Wesley & Lewis, Haley & Sigrin, Ben & Margolis, Robert, 2016. "Interactions of rooftop PV deployment with the capacity expansion of the bulk power system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C), pages 473-481.
    7. Say, Kelvin & John, Michele & Dargaville, Roger & Wills, Raymond T., 2018. "The coming disruption: The movement towards the customer renewable energy transition," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 737-748.
    8. Sabina Scarpellini & José Ángel Gimeno & Pilar Portillo-Tarragona & Eva Llera-Sastresa, 2021. "Financial Resources for the Investments in Renewable Self-Consumption in a Circular Economy Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-17, June.
    9. Felipe Barroco Fontes Cunha & Maria Cândida Arrais de Miranda Mousinho & Luciana Carvalho & Fábio Fernandes & Celso Castro & Marcelo Santana Silva & Ednildo Andrade Torres, 2021. "Renewable energy planning policy for the reduction of poverty in Brazil: lessons from Juazeiro," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(7), pages 9792-9810, July.
    10. Peter M. Schwarz, Nathan Duma, and Ercument Camadan, 2023. "Compensating Solar Prosumers Using Buy-All, Sell-All as an Alternative to Net Metering and Net Purchasing: Total Use, Rebound, and Cross Subsidization," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 1).
    11. Aksornchan Chaianong & Athikom Bangviwat & Christoph Menke & Naïm R. Darghouth, 2019. "Cost–Benefit Analysis of Rooftop PV Systems on Utilities and Ratepayers in Thailand," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-26, June.
    12. Say, Kelvin & John, Michele & Dargaville, Roger, 2019. "Power to the people: Evolutionary market pressures from residential PV battery investments in Australia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    13. Castaneda, Monica & Jimenez, Maritza & Zapata, Sebastian & Franco, Carlos J. & Dyner, Isaac, 2017. "Myths and facts of the utility death spiral," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 105-116.
    14. Nikolaidis, Alexandros I. & Charalambous, Charalambos A., 2017. "Hidden financial implications of the net energy metering practice in an isolated power system: Critical review and policy insights," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 706-717.
    15. Junhyung Kim & Keon Baek & Eunjung Lee & Jinho Kim, 2023. "Analysis of Net-Metering and Cross-Subsidy Effects in South Korea: Economic Impact across Residential Customer Groups by Electricity Consumption Level," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-14, January.
    16. Mokgonyana, Lesiba & Zhang, Jiangfeng & Li, Hailong & Hu, Yihua, 2017. "Optimal location and capacity planning for distributed generation with independent power production and self-generation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 140-150.
    17. Castaneda, Monica & Zapata, Sebastian & Cherni, Judith & Aristizabal, Andres J. & Dyner, Isaac, 2020. "The long-term effects of cautious feed-in tariff reductions on photovoltaic generation in the UK residential sector," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 1432-1443.
    18. Satchwell, Andrew & Cappers, Peter & Goldman, Charles, 2018. "Customer bill impacts of energy efficiency and net-metered photovoltaic system investments," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 144-152.
    19. Mittal, Anuj & Krejci, Caroline C. & Dorneich, Michael C., 2019. "An agent-based approach to designing residential renewable energy systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 1008-1020.
    20. Wilkinson, Sam & Maticka, Martin J. & Liu, Yue & John, Michele, 2021. "The duck curve in a drying pond: The impact of rooftop PV on the Western Australian electricity market transition," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    21. Sam Wilkinson & Michele John & Gregory M. Morrison, 2021. "Rooftop PV and the Renewable Energy Transition; a Review of Driving Forces and Analytical Frameworks," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-25, May.
    22. Joel Alpízar-Castillo & Laura Ramirez-Elizondo & Pavol Bauer, 2022. "Assessing the Role of Energy Storage in Multiple Energy Carriers toward Providing Ancillary Services: A Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-31, December.
    23. Satchwell, Andrew J. & Cappers, Peter A., 2018. "Recent developments in competition and innovation for regulated electric utilities," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 110-114.
    24. Ossenbrink, Jan, 2017. "How feed-in remuneration design shapes residential PV prosumer paradigms," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 239-255.
    25. Felipe Moraes do Nascimento & Julio Cezar Mairesse Siluk & Fernando de Souza Savian & Taís Bisognin Garlet & José Renes Pinheiro & Carlos Ramos, 2020. "Factors for Measuring Photovoltaic Adoption from the Perspective of Operators," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-29, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Oliva H., Sebastian, 2017. "Residential energy efficiency and distributed generation - Natural partners or competition?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 932-940.
    2. Eto, J. & Stoft, S. & Kito, S., 1998. "DSM shareholder incentives: recent designs and economic theory," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 7(1), pages 47-62, March.
    3. Brucal, Arlan & Tarui, Nori, 2021. "The effects of utility revenue decoupling on electricity prices," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    4. Datta, Souvik, 2019. "Decoupling and demand-side management: Evidence from the US electric industry," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 175-184.
    5. Cole, Wesley & Lewis, Haley & Sigrin, Ben & Margolis, Robert, 2016. "Interactions of rooftop PV deployment with the capacity expansion of the bulk power system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C), pages 473-481.
    6. Helms, Thorsten, 2016. "Asset transformation and the challenges to servitize a utility business model," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 98-112.
    7. Arlan Brucal & Nori Tarui, 2018. "Revenue Decoupling for Electric Utilities: Impacts on Prices and Welfare," Working Papers 201814, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Department of Economics.
    8. Karakaya, Emrah & Nuur, Cali & Hidalgo, Antonio, 2016. "Business model challenge: Lessons from a local solar company," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 1026-1035.
    9. Rogge, Karoline S. & Schleich, Joachim, 2018. "Do policy mix characteristics matter for low-carbon innovation? A survey-based exploration of renewable power generation technologies in Germany," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(9), pages 1639-1654.
    10. Poppen, Silvia, 2014. "Auswirkungen dezentraler Erzeugungsanlagen auf das Stromversorgungssystem: Ausgestaltungsmöglichkeiten der Bereitstellung neuer Erzeugungsanlagen," Arbeitspapiere 146, University of Münster, Institute for Cooperatives.
    11. Flavio Menezes & Joisa Dutra & Xuemei Zheng, 2013. "Energy Efficiency and Price Regulation," Discussion Papers Series 495, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia.
    12. Ebrahim Navid Sadjadi & Roemi Fernández, 2023. "Relational Marketing Promotes Sustainable Consumption Behavior in Renewable Energy Production," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-18, March.
    13. Horváth, Dóra & Szabó, Roland Zs., 2018. "Evolution of photovoltaic business models: Overcoming the main barriers of distributed energy deployment," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 623-635.
    14. Jesús Rodríguez-Molina & Margarita Martínez-Núñez & José-Fernán Martínez & Waldo Pérez-Aguiar, 2014. "Business Models in the Smart Grid: Challenges, Opportunities and Proposals for Prosumer Profitability," Energies, MDPI, vol. 7(9), pages 1-30, September.
    15. Herbes, Carsten & Brummer, Vasco & Rognli, Judith & Blazejewski, Susanne & Gericke, Naomi, 2017. "Responding to policy change: New business models for renewable energy cooperatives – Barriers perceived by cooperatives’ members," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 82-95.
    16. Zhang, Sufang, 2016. "Innovative business models and financing mechanisms for distributed solar PV (DSPV) deployment in China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 458-467.
    17. Aldossary, Naief A. & Rezgui, Yacine & Kwan, Alan, 2014. "Domestic energy consumption patterns in a hot and arid climate: A multiple-case study analysis," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 369-378.
    18. Aksornchan Chaianong & Athikom Bangviwat & Christoph Menke & Naïm R. Darghouth, 2019. "Cost–Benefit Analysis of Rooftop PV Systems on Utilities and Ratepayers in Thailand," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-26, June.
    19. Juliana Zapata Riveros & Matthias Speich & Mirjam West & Silvia Ulli-Beer, 2021. "Combining Business Model Innovation and Model-Based Analysis to Tackle the Deep Uncertainty of Societal Transitions—A Case Study on Industrial Electrification and Power Grid Management," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-29, June.
    20. Felipe Moraes do Nascimento & Julio Cezar Mairesse Siluk & Fernando de Souza Savian & Taís Bisognin Garlet & José Renes Pinheiro & Carlos Ramos, 2020. "Factors for Measuring Photovoltaic Adoption from the Perspective of Operators," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-29, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:85:y:2015:i:c:p:115-125. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/enpol .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.