Nevada homeowners without batteries that go solar have the choice of a flat-rate plan or two different Time-of-Use (TOU) plans. The plan that will save you the most money on electricity depends on how you use electricity. If you are willing to shift your energy usage away from the peak rate hours of 5 PM to 9 PM, then the TOU plan may offer the best chance for savings. Additionally, households with electric vehicles (EVs) can take advantage of additional savings on a TOU plan if they charge their EV at night. There are additional rate options available that could help you save more if you install home batteries.
Nevada Energy home battery incentives
If you are considering adding batteries to your solar and you live in Nevada, you are in luck! Whether you are on a flat-rate plan or a time-of-use plan, Nevada Energy offers a per kilowatt-hour incentive for installing home batteries. Homes on a time-of-use plan receive a higher incentive than those on the flat-rate plan. If you are interested, you’ll need to hurry as funds are limited and the value of the incentive decreases as funds run out:
| Step | Incentive level | TOU rate | The lessor of | Non-TOU rate | The lessor of |
| 2 | $1M – $2M | $0.19 watt/hour | 50% equipment cost up to $3000 | $0.095 watt/hour | 50% equipment cost up to $1500 |
| 3 | $2M – $3M | $0.16 watt/hour | 50% equipment cost up to $3000 | $0.08 watt/hour | 50% equipment cost up to $1500 |
The incentive pays you per watt/hour of installed battery capacity. For example, if you install 10 kilowatts of battery capacity:
- TOU incentive = $1,900
- Flat rate = $1,500 (Maximum incentive)
Nevada Energy flat-rate plan vs Time of Use (TOU) plan
Flat rate: As of May 20, 2021, Nevada Energy’s flat-rate plan charges Southern Nevada residents $0.08630 cents per kilowatt-hour and Northern Nevada residents $0.10282 per kilowatt-hour. Additionally, you are charged 4 fees that total $0.04789 and credited for a renewable energy program credit of $0.00249 per kilowatt-hour. That makes the net fees you pay equal to $0.0454 per kilowatt-hour. Add that to the $0.08630 cost for electricity and the total that you pay per kilowatt-hour under the flat-rate plan equals $0.1317, or roughly 13 cents per kilowatt-hour.
Nevada Energy credits you at 75% of the $0.08630 (roughly 8.7 cents) that they charge for power for any electricity your solar sends to the grid, which makes your credit equal to $0.064725 per kilowatt-hour that you send to the grid (roughly 6.5 cents per kilowatt-hour).
Time-of-use: Nevada Energy’s TOU plan rates vary between the summer season and the winter season, with the winter peak rate significantly higher than the summer peak energy rate. Off-peak rates are the same for both summer and winter. Additionally, if your home has an EV, you can get a special lower rate for charging your car during late-night hours.
Nevada Energy Winter time-of-use rates
Winter peak rates of $0.07457 (roughly 7.5 cents per kilowatt-hour) are charged between 5:01 PM and 9 PM daily. The off-peak rate of $0.04899 (roughly 5 cents per kilowatt-hour) is charged during all other hours. Just like the flat-rate plan, you are charged a total of $0.0454 per kilowatt-hour in fees (roughly 4.5 cents per kilowatt-hour). Because the sun sets earlier in the fall and winter, home solar owners can expect that their system will have stopped producing power by 5:01 PM. This means that home solar owners can expect to be compensated at the rate of $0.03405 per kilowatt-hour (roughly 3.4 cents per kilowatt-hour) for the electricity that their system sends to the grid during the daylight hours.
Electric vehicle charging rate: Solar households with EVs are eligible for a reduced rate for electricity during winter months between the hours of 10:01 PM and 8 AM. That reduced rate is not listed on the Nevada Energy website. The website’s rate page states that there is a reduced rate for EV charging but it doesn’t list the actual rate.
Nevada Energy Summer time-of-rates
Summer peak rates of $0.50585 are charged during the hours of 1:01 PM to 6 PM Monday through Friday. Off-peak rates of $0.05241 are charged during all other hours and on weekends. That peak rate of 50 cents per hour is by far the highest rate that Nevada Energy charges. However, home solar owners should note that their solar system should be generating electricity during most of those hours. The amount of compensation paid for electricity supplied to the grid during those hours is $0.379875, which is nearly 40 cents per hour. Solar homeowners who can minimize their use of electricity during peak rate hours may be better off choosing the time-of-use plan.
Which Nevada Energy plan is best for solar homeowners?
The summertime on-peak TOU rate is the highest rate that Nevada Energy charges. If a homeowner can’t minimize their use of power during the summer between the hours of 1:01 PM and 6 PM, Monday through Friday, they may be better off on the flat-rate plan. The flat-rate plan’s charges are higher than the time-of-use plan, except for summer peak rate hours. Therefore, if you are going to use all of the power your system generates during those peak-rate hours, you may be unlikely to save on the time-of-use plan.
What you need to know about flat-rate vs time of use billing
In short, the flat-rate plan is probably better if you can’t minimize your use of electricity during the summer peak-rate hours of 1:01 PM to 6 PM. If you can minimize your power usage, the combination of the nearly 40 cents per hour compensation for the electricity your system supplies to the grid, plus the lower overall rates (except for the on-peak summer rate) means that you are most likely to be better off on the time-of-use plan.
Nevada Energy’s time-of-use guarantee
Nevada Energy guarantees that in your first year of service, a time-of-use plan will cost you less than the flat-rate plan. At the end of your first year on a time-of-use plan, Nevada Energy will calculate what your cost would have been under the flat-rate plan. If you paid more, they will refund you the difference and offer to switch you to the flat-rate plan. This guarantee makes switching to the time-of-use plan a smart idea, especially if you have a plan to minimize your electricity usage during summer peak rate hours.
Nevada Energy daily demand pricing
Daily demand pricing offers a reduced rate over the flat-rate plan, but there is a catch. During the peak rate hours of 1:01 PM to 6 PM summertime, and 5:01 PM to 9 PM wintertime, if your electrical demand is higher than it is during off-peak hours, an additional charge of $0.31 (summer) and $0.05 (winter) will be charged on your electrical usage during those peak rate hours. The summer surcharge would erase any savings you’d have over the flat-rate plan. Daily demand pricing is worth it if you can avoid high electricity usage during peak hours.
What Nevada homeowners can do to minimize electricity usage during peak hours
The smart way to manage your electricity usage is to install a smart home system that includes a smart thermostat. A smart home system will manage your power consumption and automatically minimize it during those peak rate hours. The caveat is that smart home systems require smart appliances. If you can’t afford smart appliances, you may be able to still save money and manage your electricity usage by installing a smart home thermostat.
Freedom Forever is here to help Nevada homeowners save on electricity
This article has shown that you have some tough choices to make when deciding which rate plan is best for your solar home. Freedom Forever and our family of independent authorized dealers are here to help you make smart choices about how you are billed for power. We can help you choose the best solar system for your home and pick the right rate plan for your electricity needs.