Net Metering for a Rate G or Rate M customer-generator – Option I
A customer‑generator is a Hydro‑Québec customer who produces electricity using equipment they own and operate to meet part or all of their energy needs.
If you’re a customer-generator and if you generate electricity from a renewable energy source, Net Metering Option I may be of interest to you. It allows you to inject your surplus power into the Hydro‑Québec grid in exchange for credits in kilowatthours (kWh) applied to your bill. Inversely, if the power you generate is not enough to meet your needs, you can draw power from the Hydro‑Québec grid and enjoy reliable, high-quality service.
Your electricity bill will show your consumption in kilowatthours, detailing how much electricity was supplied by Hydro-Québec and how much you injected into the grid. If you generate more than you use, the surplus will earn banked credits that will be deducted from your future bills.
This information cannot in any case replace the document entitled Electricity Rates [PDF 2.3 MB].
Managing your surplus bank
Under Net Metering Option I, if you feed in more electricity than you draw out, the surplus is put into a bank in the form of credits.
The balance of your surplus bank is credited at the average cost of supply when the bank is reset, every 24 months.
Your surplus bank will be initially reset to zero on March 31 of the first even year following your initial sign‑up. After that, it will be reset to zero at the start of the consumption period beginning after a date you select that falls within the 24 months following the sign‑up date and every 24 months thereafter.
Example
Consumption period 1
- Kilowatthours supplied by Hydro‑Québec 1,300 kWh
- Kilowatthours injected into Hydro‑Québec grid 300 kWh
- Kilowatthours billed 1,000 kWh
Consumption period 2
- Kilowatthours supplied by Hydro‑Québec 800 kWh
- Kilowatthours injected into Hydro‑Québec grid 1,000 kWh
- Kilowatthours billed 0 kWh
- Kilowatthours credited and applied to balance of future bill 200 kWh
Who can sign up for Net Metering Option I?
Residential and farm customers billed at Rate D, DM or DP and small-power business customers billed at Rate G and medium‑power customers billed at rate M whose self‑generation capacity does not exceed 1,000 kilowatts and who are able to generate electricity from a renewable energy source. The eligible renewable energy sources are:
- wind power
- photovoltaic power
- hydroelectric power
- geothermal power (for electricity generation only)
- bioenergy (forest biomass or biogas)
The electricity must be self-generated at a facility that is located at the same delivery point as the electricity service contact.
Customers are responsible for the costs of purchasing, installing, maintaining and inspecting the equipment.
Equipment compliance
Your generating equipment must be compliant with current regulations in Québec and with all conditions stipulated by Hydro‑Québec, in particular Hydro‑Québec standards E.12‑05 and E.12‑07.
The maximum generating capacity of the equipment must not exceed the lesser of the following:
- the estimated capacity required to meet all or part of your energy needs, or
- the maximum self‑generation capacity does not exceed 1,000 kilowatts.
Want to sign up for Net Metering Option I or find out more about it?
Visit Hydro-Québec’s Self-generation website.
