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Each SPG Solar, Inc. (SPG) solar system is a combined technological and economic solution designed to eliminate the electric bill for a home or business. SPG’s solar systems stay connected to the utility grid—no batteries necessary—to take advantage of California’s Net Metering law. This law requires public utilities to credit renewable energy producers at the “retail rate” for the electricity they send out to the grid.

Net metering is designed to reduce demand during long hot summer days when energy demand is heaviest, while providing energy credits that allow solar producers to reduce or eliminate their annual electric bill.

Under Net Metering, a benefit of deregulation of the energy system, the utility credits solar energy producers for any surplus electricity they send out to the grid. On sunny days the electric meter spins backwards and the solar system earns credit for the energy at the utility’s retail energy rates. At night or on rainy days, the grid provides the power and the home or building taps into the credit the solar system earned while the sun was shining. The energy from the solar system plus the utility credit will zero out the net annual electric bill.

In the California region where most of the company's systems are installed, SPG is one of PG&E's Net Energy Metering (NEM) Services top clients. In fact, for Standard NEM small business and residential installations of 10 kW and below, SPG had the second highest number of interconnections in 2004. For the Expanded NEM projects ranging from 10 kW to 1 megawatt (MW), SPG had more interconnections than any other company in the PG&E territory in 2004.

To take advantage of net metering, SPG changes a home, business or government facility utility bill schedule to the A-6 time-of-use rate schedule for residences, and the E-7 time-of-use schedule for commercial and government customers.

Steps to a net metered solar system:

1. The solar system is connected to the grid—no
   batteries necessary
2. The system produces surplus energy during summer
   peak demand periods
3. After the building or home uses the electricity it needs,
   the solar system sends surplus power to the grid
4. The meter runs backwards and the utility credits
   the solar energy producer at the time-of-use retail rate
5. The energy producer taps into the utility credit when it
   uses grid power at night and on rainy days.