PG&E’s Net Energy Metering Aggregation (NEMA) program is designed to benefit a single customer with multiple eligible meters on the same property, or on adjacent or contiguous properties. NEMA enables one renewable generation system, such as solar technology, to serve the energy needs (aggregated load) of multiple eligible meters.
The program follows the model of Net Energy Metering (NEM): the energy you produce, minus the energy you consume, equals net energy.
Excess power beyond what is used at the meter where the renewable generator is installed is exported back to the grid. Then, it’s allocated to each eligible meter at the end of each billing month. At the end of 12 billing months from interconnection, all charges and credits are reconciled in an annual “True-Up" statement. Note: For agricultural and large commercial meters, charges and credits are reconciled monthly.
Customers are eligible if all of the metered accounts are owned, leased or rented by the same PG&E customer of record. Also, the meters must be located on the same property as the renewable generator or on adjacent properties.
Play this video for an introduction to NEMA and how to prepare prior to installation.
Audio description and transcript also available for this video.
Access an audio descriptive version
Download a transcript (PDF, 70 KB)
Once you decide that NEMA is the right program for you, follow these steps to get ready to work with PG&E and a contractor:
Learn more about how to increase your savings through energy efficiency.
Make a list of all meter numbers associated with meters that you want to benefit from NEMA before installation of the renewable generation system. It’s best to do this upfront because once your NEMA project is interconnected to the PG&E grid, any adding or switching of meters may cause you to lose solar credits. If you’re unsure whether to include a meter, we recommend that you add it to your list and then talk it through with your contractor.
Review the rate schedules of each meter to ensure they’re on the best Time-of-Use (TOU) rate. In order to be approved for NEMA, all of the eligible meters must be on a TOU rate. Rate changes can be requested online by contacting PG&E at 1-800-743-5000 or by signing in to Your Account.
We recommend merging similar services onto one account to make it easy to track meters once you are approved for NEMA.
PLEASE NOTE: It’s important to merge services before being approved for NEMA because changing the Customer of Record (“Change Party”) after being approved causes an early reconciliation of your charges and credits (“True-Up”) and you will lose all of the banked NEMA credits.</>
Tips for merging before being approved for NEMA:
To request a merge, contact the Solar Customer Service Center at 1-877-743-4112.
Each PG&E “service” has a meter number and service agreement ID. Using service descriptors allows you to add a brief label to your service agreement ID (e.g., “Well Pump”). This is useful to keep track of each “service” as the meters and service agreement IDs may change when being converted to NEMA. Add descriptors by contacting the Solar Customer Service Center at 1-877-743-4112.
