Distributed solar offers benefits to all ratepayers, according to new studies

According to two new studies, distributed solar power offers a benefit to all ratepayers, whether they own solar systems or not.

One of the reports is a collaboration between SolarCity, the country's largest solar installer, and the Natural Resources Defense Council. Their conclusion, vetted by academics at Stanford University, was that residential solar systems deliver net benefits to ratepayers of between 1.6 cents and 3.6 cents per kilowatt hour of electricity. This evidence contradicts assumptions by the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada made last year when they reduced net-metering rates from retail to wholesale level and increased base service charges. The changes impacted solar customers who had invested in solar with the expectation that they would get full retail price for electricity that their homes supplied to the grid.