Austin Energy solar export rate
What Austin Energy pays for power exported from rooftop solar in Texas, with the source and the date it was checked.
Fixed export rate
$0.0991/kWh for systems under 1 MW-AC; $0.0724/kWh for systems 1 MW-AC and over (Value of Solar). The separate Solar Standard Offer Rider publishes no fixed rate - the tariff sets it by formula as the straight average of the prior year's Value of Solar.
Austin Energy · Texas
Austin Energy credits 100% of metered solar production under Value of Solar, with excess credit carried month to month. The Solar Standard Offer is a separate export-payment rider requiring an approved application and interconnection agreement.
Source: austinenergy.com · austinenergy.com
Full Austin Energy detail →Texas rules that apply to Austin Energy
The state framework sets the default. Where Austin Energy pays something different, the utility tariff governs and is what the card above reports.
| Compensation mechanism | No statewide requirement; compensation is utility- or REP-specific. Competitive-market customers must choose a REP plan with buyback terms, while municipal utilities set their own programs. |
|---|---|
| Export rate | No statewide rate. Published municipal examples include Austin Energy Value of Solar at $0.0991/kWh for systems under 1 MW-AC and $0.0724/kWh for systems 1 MW-AC and over. Austin's separate Solar Standard Offer Rider does not publish a fixed rate - the tariff sets it by formula as the straight average of the energy, transmission and ancillary services components over the most recent five historical years, with the transmission component excluded for systems at or above 1 MW. CPS Energy's net-excess-generation credit is $0.0165/kWh October-May and $0.0202/kWh June-September. |
| Rate effective | Austin Value of Solar rates are effective March 1, 2023 and subject to change; the Solar Standard Offer Rider sets its rate by formula rather than a published figure. CPS's published billing example states the seasonal NEG rates shown for its billing program. |
| Credit rollover | No statewide rule. Austin Energy says excess Value-of-Solar bill credit carries month to month and is non-transferable. CPS Energy says a net-excess-generation credit applies to the next month's bill and any carryover balance applies in the following month. |
| Credit expiration | No statewide expiration rule; credits are utility- or REP-specific. Austin Energy's Value-of-Solar tariff says unused credits carry forward but are forfeited when service terminates; CPS Energy's published billing facts say a carryover balance applies in the following month, without stating an additional statewide or annual expiration. |
| Annual true-up | No statewide annual true-up or settlement date. PUCT says buyback rules depend on the customer's electric provider; Austin Energy's Value-of-Solar tariff bills and credits monthly, and CPS Energy applies excess-generation credits to the next month's bill. |
| Aggregate program cap | No statewide aggregate program-capacity limit is established for net-metering compensation; Texas has no statewide net-metering program. PUCT rules establish distributed-generation interconnection and technical requirements, while buyback rules are set by the customer's provider. |
| Program status | No statewide net-metering program has an open, full, capped, or closed status; Texas has no statewide net-metering mandate. Individual retail electric providers and municipal utilities set their own buyback or credit-program terms. |
| Grandfathering | No statewide net-metering grandfathering rule exists because Texas has no statewide net-metering mandate. Any protection for customers under older, more generous export terms is contract- or utility-specific; the PUCT directs customers to check the electric provider's rules and buyback contract. |
| Regulator | Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) regulates retail electric providers in competitive areas and the poles-and-wires companies, but excludes city-owned utilities and electric cooperatives from that utility regulation. |
| Governing rule | PUCT Substantive Rules §25.211 (interconnection of on-site distributed generation) and §25.212 (technical requirements); these establish interconnection requirements, not a statewide retail compensation rate. |
| Pending change | Austin Energy's Value-of-Solar FAQ lists the 2027 rate as TBD and says the rate is recalculated every three years; the Solar Standard Offer tariff says its payment rates update every three years beginning in March 2026. |
Other Texas utilities
- CPS Energy (San Antonio)Fixed rate$0.0165/kWh October-May and $0.0202/kWh June-September for net excess generation