Consumers Energy solar export rate
What Consumers Energy pays for power exported from rooftop solar in Michigan, with the source and the date it was checked.
Fixed export rate
C11.3 outflow credit varies by rate schedule and season; current residential RSP credit is 15.1904 cents/kWh summer on-peak, 10.3970 cents/kWh summer off-peak, and 8.2996 cents/kWh all kWh October-May, plus PSCR. Inflow is billed at the retail rate plus applicable surcharges and PSCR.
Consumers Energy · Michigan
C11.3; legacy net-metering customers retain the prior tariff until its applicable term ends. Consumers' tariff states excess credits carry forward to later billing periods.
Source: consumersenergy.com · consumersenergy.com
Full Consumers Energy detail →Michigan rules that apply to Consumers Energy
The state framework sets the default. Where Consumers Energy pays something different, the utility tariff governs and is what the card above reports.
| Compensation mechanism | Distributed Generation inflow/outflow billing: customer inflow is billed at the retail rate and exported outflow receives a power-supply credit; legacy net-metering customers remain on legacy tariffs until their applicable transition point. |
|---|---|
| Export rate | Utility- and rate-schedule-specific, not one statewide flat rate. DTE's current Rider 18 residential D1/D1.6 outflow credit is 8.782 cents/kWh for the first 17 kWh per day and 10.081 cents/kWh for excess; Consumers' current RSP outflow credits are 15.1904 cents/kWh summer on-peak, 10.3970 cents/kWh summer off-peak, and 8.2996 cents/kWh all kWh October-May, plus PSCR where applicable. |
| Rate effective | DTE Rider 18 rates are effective March 5, 2026; Consumers C11.3 outflow-credit rates are effective May 1, 2026. |
| Credit rollover | Unused outflow credits carry forward to subsequent billing periods under both DTE Rider 18 and Consumers C11.3; Consumers applies credits only to eligible electric charges, while DTE excludes securitization charges. |
| Credit expiration | DTE states Rider 18 credits do not expire during service and are carried in the Excess Generation Bank; at termination, remaining credits are applied to the final bill or refunded. Consumers states remaining credits may be refunded at the company's discretion on termination, with any amount above the final bill refunded. |
| Annual true-up | There is no single statewide annual true-up date for the current DG tariffs. DTE carries credits forward and settles remaining credits when Rider 18 service ends; Consumers reports DG data annually by March 31 for the preceding calendar year and may issue a payment at its discretion when participation ends. |
| Aggregate program cap | The DG program limit is 10% of the utility's average in-state peak load for the preceding five calendar years, allocated between systems of 20 kW or less and systems above 20 kW through 550 kW; at least 50% is reserved for the smaller category and no more than 50% for the larger category. |
| Program status | The statewide 10% statutory cap is in force; the MPSC's 2025 report lists remaining capacity by utility and category, including 79% remaining for Consumers' up-to-20-kW category and 87% remaining for DTE's up-to-20-kW category in the report's data. |
| Grandfathering | Customers enrolled in legacy net metering before the applicable utility DG start date remain on the legacy program until the prior program's terms terminate; DTE identifies May 9, 2019 as its DG availability date and Consumers identifies January 1, 2021. |
| Regulator | Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC). |
| Governing rule | Michigan Public Act 235 of 2023, codified principally at MCL 460.1173 and MCL 460.1177, together with the MPSC-approved utility DG tariffs and Michigan Interconnection and Distributed Generation Standards. |
| Pending change | No pending statewide change identified in the cited MPSC materials; the PA 235 tariff revisions were approved March 13, 2025, while utility rates remain subject to later MPSC-approved tariff revisions such as Consumers' May 1, 2026 outflow-credit update. |
Other Michigan utilities
- DTE EnergyFixed rateRider 18 outflow credit varies by attached rate schedule; current residential D1/D1.6 credit is