LADWP Net Metering

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, also known as LADWP, has a solar program that started in 1999. They created a system that connects households with a solar power system to the energy grid. A system was created to help with the energy management of the community. LADWP net metering is a metering system that helps manage the energy produced through solar power systems.

In a house where a solar power system is installed, it can provide the electricity needed for the household members’ consumption. Depending on the size of the solar system, however, it may or may not produce enough energy for the needs of the household. For that reason, it’s prudent for the household to have a backup plan and not rely on their own solar system as their main source of electricity.

That’s where net metering 2.0 can help.

Connecting a home solar power system to the energy grid provides two main benefits:

• In the event that the power produced by the household solar system is not enough for the family’s consumption, electricity can be taken from the energy grid to supply the household.
• If the solar power system produces more energy than the household needs, it sends the surplus energy to the grid to be sold at retail rates and provides the household with credits for their future bills.

Los Angeles Department of Water and Power net metering installs a meter in a household that measures the energy flow of the household in relation to the energy grid. If the solar power produced by the solar system in the house is not enough, the meter runs while the power grid supplies the energy to supplement the need for electricity of the house. If the solar system produces more energy than the household consumes, the meter also tracks this and sends the excess energy back to the power grid.

To put this in perspective, let’s take a look at a typical residential solar energy system that provides 250 kilowatts of energy.

A household of five members typically consumes 300 kilowatts of electricity in a month, so the additional 50 kilowatts needed for the household can then be taken from the power grid. There are other factors that may also affect the power supply of the household. The weather can affect how much solar power can be produced by the system. System maintenance and efficiency also affect how much can be produced by the system. The size of the system also determines how much is produced for the household. Finally, energy consumption may also not be constant for a household wherein a family may consume more or less electricity during certain months.

Having access to the power grid to supply the energy needed that solar power cannot cover helps the household to maintain a consistent supply of energy for their needs.

There are also instances in which the solar system may produce more energy than a family can consume. For instance, let’s say the family in our example went on vacation for three weeks. Since they were not home, the energy their solar system produced during this time would have gone unused. With the California net metering program, this surplus energy would be sent back to the grid and credited to the homeowner’s bill.

LADWP net metering provides several benefits for the community. Los Angeles is a sunny area and is a prime location for solar power energy production. Through the use of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power net metering, it manages the solar power in a way that benefits the whole community. It addresses the need for energy by distributing the excess power produced by some households to other households that need it.

Net metering also helps manage the cost of electricity in a household by providing benefits in the form of credits for the energy saved and passed to the grid during times of high production. It also helps cover the supply of electricity that the household solar power system may fail to supply.

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