Following the national expansion of the grid tied solar initiatives and an increased interest in renewable energy transition; the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is reminding the public that the Net Billing programme is available to eligible consumers.
In a release on Friday, the PUC said that the net billing programme empowers residential/commercial consumers, with approved grid-tied solar photovoltaic systems (PVs) under 100 kW, to sell excess energy produced during the day to GPL.
“The sale of the produced excess electricity is credited to the consumers account at 90% of the residential tariff, i.e. GPL pays the producer/consumer (prosumer) for electricity at this rate. This mechanism can be beneficial to households as it may allow your electricity bill to be reduced to zero or even result in your account having a surplus of credit. Evidence has shown that under such an arrangement these systems may pay for themselves within three to five years, leaving the prosumer to benefit from low or non-existent bills for the rest of the lifetime of the systems”, the PUC said.
Households that currently have the rooftop solar systems in place are encouraged to apply to Guyana Power and Light (GPL) to be registered as a prosumer. It recommends contacting GPL to ensure that technical specifications are met for registration with this programme.
The PUC also drew attention to the low interest ‘green’ loans that major local commercial banks are offering.
The PUC encouraged consumers to be aware of their consumption patterns and utilize the approved mechanisms that are in place to aid beneficial production and responsible consumption.
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