Solar Customers Say Con Ed Still Not Crediting Them for Power Generated

This article was originally published on Aug 29 5:00am EDT by THE CITY

Con Ed customers who take part in community solar energy programs continue to be plagued by inconsistent discounts on their electric bills.

Last year, THE CITY reported on a Con Ed snafu that left community solar subscribers either without the full credits they were owed or without any credits at all. Con Ed promised to fix the problems, but they persist, even after state regulators stepped in.

Customers can subscribe to solar projects that may be installed either on their building or somewhere other than where they live. Community solar customers earn credits on their monthly electric bills from the energy generated via the project.

Of Con Ed’s nearly 17,000 community solar customers, almost 30% — about 5,000 of them — have at least two months of credits owed, according to data compiled by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and obtained by THE CITY.

Con Ed is working to automate the billing and crediting for customers and plans to launch a new system in September, according to a June document the company filed with the state Public Service Commission.

Of the customers whose accounts are not current, just under 4,000 are on an automated system, which means they “are receiving regular bill credits as we bring them up to date,” Con Ed spokesperson Allan Drury said.

“We continue to reduce the backlog through automation and the work of the additional people we have assigned to this matter,” he added.

Noah Ginsburg, executive director of the solar trade group New York Solar Energy Industries Association, says he hopes a resolution comes soon.

“Community solar is one of the most accessible ways for people to participate in clean energy and also to lower their bills,” Ginsburg said. “It does work, and we really just need the utilities to do their part.”

With recent rate hikes in place that generate higher electric bills, “bill savings for…