Battle over California's future rooftop PV policy heats up

The battle over the hugely important California rooftop solar market is intensifying, with the state’s two largest investor owned utilities – Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas & Edison – submitting long-awaited proposals that would see PV system owners paid less for the excess power they generate.

The issue, set to be settled by the end of 2015, is critical to rooftop solar companies, San Mateo-based SolarCity chief among them.

At the heart of the issue is whether – or how long – California’s net-energy metering (NEM) policy should continue to oblige utilities to pay homeowners with PV systems the full retail rate for any electricity they flow back onto the grid.

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