‘Their recipe for incentivising batteries is to punish solar’: CALSSA exec hits out at California NEM proposal

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
The proposal would cut export rates by almost 80% in an effort to encourage distributed energy storage. Image: REC Solar.

The California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) most recent net energy metering (NEM) proposal is too extreme and will discourage homeowners from adopting residential solar, according to Bernadette Del Chiaro, executive director of clean energy business group the California Solar and Storage Association (CALSSA).

Speaking to PV Tech, Del Chiaro said that “instead of accelerating batteries, all we’re doing is decelerating solar”. 

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The most recent iteration of the proposed NEM 3.0 legislation incentivises battery storage alongside rooftop solar by proposing time-specific energy rates, higher ones at peak evening times and lower rates in the day. It also forecasts US$136/month savings for residential solar-plus-storage customers compared with US$100/month for standalone solar customers.

The most controversial measure, however, has been a near-80% cutting of export rates for residential solar customers. The current rate is US$0.30/kW, but the proposal would reduce this to US$0.08/kW.

Reactions across the industry have specified the need for a gradual glide path to lower export rates and thereby encourage storage.

“When you really crunch the numbers, which we’ve been taking the time to do, it doesn’t move the needle on energy storage,” Del Chiaro said.

In its original proposal for the NEM 3.0 legislation, filed in March 2021, CALSSA highlighted the importance of energy storage to the California grid and for meeting the state’s greenhouse gas targets. Distributed storage was cited as a key way to deal with increased load on the grid from electrification.

However, CALSSA’s original proposal said: “Limited battery availability and high soft costs for storage projects remain barriers to full-scale storage deployment, and the Commission must allow time for the distributed energy storage market to mature.”

CPUC’s November proposal said that its measures “allow for a transition period for the solar industry to adapt to a solar paired with storage marketplace”.

For Del Chiaro, the most recent proposed decision doesn’t fulfil this. “It’s like their recipe for incentivising batteries is to punish solar,” she said. Drastically decreased export rates will make domestic solar markedly less affordable for Californians.

A recent EY report identified decentralised grids and distributed solar as key to the implementation of renewable energy in developed countries. Wood Mackenzie research in October said that the US rooftop solar market was in growth mode, but the Californian NEM proposals were one of the factors that may pose challenges in the future given the state’s historically dominant position in the market.

21 October 2025
New York, USA
Returning for its 12th edition, Solar and Storage Finance USA Summit remains the annual event where decision-makers at the forefront of solar and storage projects across the United States and capital converge. Featuring the most active solar and storage transactors, join us for a packed two-days of deal-making, learning and networking.
16 June 2026
Napa, USA
PV Tech has been running PV ModuleTech Conferences since 2017. PV ModuleTech USA, on 16-17 June 2026, will be our fifth PV ModulelTech conference dedicated to the U.S. utility scale solar sector. The event will gather the key stakeholders from solar developers, solar asset owners and investors, PV manufacturing, policy-making and and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out the PV module supply channels to the U.S. out to 2027 and beyond.

Read Next

Premium
October 8, 2025
PV Talk: Smart Energy Council's Nigel Morris reflects on how Australia has become a global testbed for distributed solar and storage innovation.
October 8, 2025
Officials from Norway and Egypt have agreed provisional terms for the financing of the Dandara solar park in Egypt, which is being built and operated by Norwegian IPP Scatec.
October 8, 2025
Saatvik Green Energy has secured new solar PV module orders worth more than INR7 billion (US$84 million), to be delivered in this financial year.
October 8, 2025
Australia's NEM achieved a new minimum operational demand record of 9,666MW, marking a 4% decrease from the previous record.
October 8, 2025
Frontier Energy plans to expand its Waroona Renewable Energy Project into a renewable energy precinct by 2031, targeting up to 1GW solar.
October 7, 2025
Econergy will acquire 100% stake in the 155MW Ratesti solar project in Romania, further expanding its European renewable energy portfolio.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK