How Does Net Metering Help Commercial Buildings Save Money on Energy?

Utilizing a net metering system works by allowing the owner of a building to be billed for the surplus amount of energy that it produces. In this way, excess energy produced can be sold back to the utility and offset its consumption. The most significant benefit of switching to a solar power system is that you will no longer have to pay high electricity costs.

 

How Can Net Metering Help You Save Money on Your Electric Bill?

 

Switching to solar has always been a terrific option for industrialists searching for a dependable renewable energy source and strategies to reduce their energy bills. While utilizing the energy generated by your solar photovoltaic (PV) system can assist in minimize the amount of electricity you use from the grid, net metering can also help you save money by allowing you to receive a credit from your utility provider for the extra energy you produce.

 

How does net metering operate, and what is it?

 

Net metering is a billing system that rewards businesses for using renewable energy sources like solar to generate their power. If a utility client has a solar PV system on their roof or property, there's a chance they'll create more energy throughout the day than they need. Of course, this depends on several things, including the size of the solar panel installation and the business's energy usage patterns. When net metering is in effect, the electric metre "runs backwards" to offer a credit against power used when the system's output exceeds the energy use.

 

The benefits of net metering

 

Net metering has the potential to save homeowners with solar PV systems hundreds of dollars each year on their energy bills. Net metering may alleviate strain on the energy grid's distribution and minimize energy loss by transferring electricity kilometres away from the nearest power plant and improving your bottom line. Initially, state authorities created laws like net metering to encourage the use of renewable energy sources in areas where solar adoption was low. As adoption has grown across the country, attempts to improve net metering systems have popped up to make them more successful and cost-effective. Customers who produce their power cleanly and efficiently can benefit from the investment made on their rooftops through net metering, lowering their monthly electric costs.

 

Extra financial credit

 

If the quantity of energy created by the owner's system exceeds the amount of energy consumed, the owner will be rewarded with additional credits and money.

 

Battery storage and a backup generator are no longer needed

 

Unlike off-grid PV installations, owners do not need battery storage devices while employing net metering because the utility grid holds the additional electricity. It also reduces the need for expensive generators because the power grid serves as a backup generator.

 

Inexpensive and low maintenance

 

Because solar panels are low-maintenance, the battery and generator are the only pieces of a PV system that need to be serviced. However, you may eliminate these components and reduce your maintenance costs even further by using net metering.

 

How do electricity bills work with net metering?

 

Most industries will generate extra power in the summer and need more electricity from the grid in the winter. Your utility will not give you a monthly check if you generate more than you need because these changes in production are pretty predictable. Instead, you'll save up additional credits throughout the summer, so you may use them at night and during the winter months when you need them. Even if you create much more than you need in some months and considerably less in others, your system may generate enough power to equal your total electricity demand with the appropriate design for a year.

You'll get a credit depending on the net number of kilowatt-hours you contributed back to the grid if your solar power system generates more electricity than you consume over a month. You must buy power from your utility to make up the difference if you create less electricity than you need in a given month. In these cases, you would be charged for the power you consume, less any extra electricity generated by your solar panels.

 

In Pakistan, how does net metering work?

 

In Pakistan, net metering is an electrical regulation that permits customers who own or plan to own a Renewable Energy plant to generate power for their consumption and supply the excess to the national grid by turning off units of electricity consumed during off-peak hours or when the RE facility's production is insufficient to meet the consumer load by turning off units of electricity consumed during off-peak hours or when the RE facility's output is insufficient to meet the consumer load by turning off units of electricity consumed during off-peak hours or when the RE facility' Either the customer's electricity bill will be decreased, or the user will be compensated for energy exported to the grid. 

NEPRA announced net-metering regulations in September 2015, allowing DISCOs in Pakistan to purchase excess units of energy produced by users and net them off against grid units used. According to this legislation, any national grid customer with a three-phase connection can employ net metering for small-scale (1kW to 1MW) renewable energy installations. For power generation, renewable energy is a long-term choice, and during the life of the system, solar PV technology provides access to inexpensive power. Commercial clients can reduce their power bills by switching their electrical demand to Renewable Energy (RE).

 

A Promising Investment in Solar Power

 

Pakistani businesspeople are ready to diversify the country's energy mix by investing in solar power plants. This strategy promotes sophisticated, clean energy technologies in the industrial and commercial sectors, such as photovoltaic solar energy, solar panel systems, and net metering. Many private companies are now pulling for solar grid solutions on a Power Purchase Agreement basis, backed by the government's commitment to supporting sustainable energy.

 

Solar energy system provides power to the industrial sector

 

Pakistan is one of the wealthiest countries in terms of solar energy availability, and it has a solar energy potential of 1500 to 2200 kWh/m/year, which places it sixth in the world.

 

Pakistan's industrial and commercial sectors are significantly reliant on non-renewable grid power. Diesel generators, for example, provide backup power but are expensive and unreliable. As a result, businesses find it increasingly difficult to compete in highly competitive global and local markets. As a result, many companies seek more environmentally friendly options, such as solar energy systems, to run their everyday operations.

 

 

Final Thoughts

 

Commercial Solar Financing is a service that we provide from start to finish in-house. We operate on the Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) paradigm, acting as a catalyst to help Pakistan's ambitious Clean Energy projects get off the ground. Our specialized engineering, design, finance, and procurement teams collaborate diligently with our customers to create bespoke turnkey solutions.

 

Shams Power Limited, Pakistan's premier solar energy savings developer and investor, has secured a PKR 2 billion financing facility with Bank Alfalah, with a partial credit guarantee from GuarantCo, part of the Private Infrastructure Development Group, covering 75 percent of the loan (PIDG). Shams Power will use this funding to build about 21 MW of rooftop and ground-mounted solar plants at commercial, industrial, and institutional (e.g., university, hospital) sites across Pakistan to reach grid-connected consumers. 

If you want to know more about how solar can save your energy bills, you can contact us at (+92) 0341 7426777 or visit our website : www.shams-power.com