NC Net Metering

The NC Net Metering governs how North Carolina credits excess solar generation sent back to the grid, one of the state's DSIRE-tracked solar policies. Eligibility is scoped to residential customers, with a stated benefit of Retail rate credit. DSIRE lists no scheduled sunset, though enabling legislation and appropriations can still be revised year to year.

That baseline is slower than most states, which raises the stakes for every incentive on the table. North Carolina averages 5.2 kWh/m²/day of usable sunlight and residential rates of 12.8¢/kWh, producing an estimated 9,110 kWh/year and $1,166 of annual utility offset on a typical 6 kW system costing $16,800. That baseline already implies a 14.4-year simple payback and a 25-year modeled net of roughly $12,350 before this incentive - every dollar this net metering delivers compresses that payback further.

A handful of other levers are worth checking alongside this one. North Carolina has 4 solar incentive programs indexed in DSIRE, including adjacent options like NC Renewable Energy Property Tax Exclusion, Duke Energy NC Solar Rebate. The state's net-metering policy is classified as full, which governs how excess generation is credited and often decides whether a given program is worth claiming for a specific household.