Tennessee · Performance incentive · Mid-stack program
TVA Green Power Providers Program (TN)
Pays residential solar owners in Tennessee based on actual output -- see the rate, eligibility, and how it changes payback below.
- Premium payment per kWh
- stated benefit
- Residential
- eligible customers
- 16.7 yr
- Tennessee baseline payback
- 2
- other Tennessee programs
Mid-stack program · late directory
Tennessee stacks 3 tracked programs; this performance incentive sits beside peer levers on a 16.7-year modeled baseline.
- Stack3 programs
- In-state #2/2
- Type #6/8
- Baseline16.7 yr
In-state directory place #2 of 2 (late alphabet). National performance incentive directory #6 of 8. Amounts and eligibility change; verify with the official program page before relying on a dollar figure. Informational only - not financial advice. See our disclaimer.
Program description
TVA pays a premium for customer-generated renewable energy exported to the grid.
Program at a glance
- Program type
- Performance incentive
- Eligible customers
- Residential
- Stated benefit
- Premium payment per kWh
- State electricity rate
- 11.5¢/kWh
- Tennessee solar score
- 25/100
Solar's trajectory in Tennessee
The market this incentive operates in: total installed solar capacity in Tennessee reported to the EIA.
Tennessee's solar incentive stack
How this performance incentive sits among Tennessee's 2 tracked programs, by type
- Tax exemption
Tax exemption
1 programs
- Performance
Performance
1 programs
What this shows Tennessee tracks 2 incentive types, 1 of them performance-based like this one -- paid on actual output rather than a one-time credit, stacking with the state's other program types.
Where this performance incentive sits in Tennessee's mid-size stack
The TVA Green Power Providers Program (TN) pays based on actual measured generation rather than a one-time credit, one of Tennessee's DSIRE-tracked solar incentive programs. Eligibility is scoped to residential customers, with a stated benefit of Premium payment per kWh. 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. Tennessee averages 4.9 kWh/m²/day of usable sunlight and residential rates of 11.5¢/kWh, producing an estimated 8,585 kWh/year and $987 of annual utility offset on a typical 6 kW system costing $16,500. That baseline already implies a 16.7-year simple payback and a 25-year modeled net of roughly $8,175 before this incentive - every dollar this performance incentive delivers compresses that payback further.
A handful of other levers are worth checking alongside this one. Tennessee has 3 solar incentive programs indexed in DSIRE, including adjacent options like TN Solar Property Tax Exemption. The state's net-metering policy is classified as partial, which governs how excess generation is credited and often decides whether a given program is worth claiming for a specific household.
Other Tennessee incentives
Frequently asked questions
What is the TVA Green Power Providers Program (TN) among Tennessee's mid-size programs?
How does the TVA Green Power Providers Program (TN) work?
Who qualifies, and what does a late in-state directory place mean?
How does this incentive affect solar ROI in Tennessee?
Are there other solar incentives in Tennessee?
Incentive data from the DSIRE (Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency); state solar economics from NREL and the U.S. EIA. See our methodology · Tennessee solar data · ROI calculator · All incentives.