Combating Your Electric Bill with Solar Power?
The author is trying it out.
By Hank Silverberg
CORRESPONDENT
Email Hank
Electricity rates will be going up again in 2027 for Dominion Virginia Power’s 2.7 million customers, after the State Corporation Commission approved the company’s rate increase request last year.
And that has prompted more and more people to look for ways to cut down their electricity costs.
It appears to have prompted a spike in the number of people trying to generate their own power with rooftop or backyard solar panels. According to Dominion Power, there has been a 20% increase in net-metering customers—those who have solar panels on their homes or businesses and send excess power to the grid.
As of this month, there are 57,614 customers in Dominion’s territory in Virginia with rooftop or ground-mounted solar panels. Non-residential users make up 1,162 of that total.
But the impact on the grid is hard to gauge. A Dominion spokesman said those customers generate 522.72 megawatts of power that is fed into the grid, what he described as “a small percentage when compared to the total amount of energy that Dominion Energy Virginia generates.”
A rate increase approved last year will cost the typical residential customer $11.24 more each month this year, with another $2.36 each month in 2027.
But for many homeowners, the right deal on solar panels can bring some savings.
Buying panels may be the best option. But they can be expensive and the return on your investment can take years.
Many homeowners who installed their panels between 2022 and the end of 2025, using a now defunct 30% federal tax credit on their installation fee, are now paying almost nothing for electricity and still getting a big break on their income taxes—though many are still paying off loans for the panels.
You can no longer apply for that tax deduction. It was eliminated by Congress and President Donald Trump’s budget.
But there are alternatives. This reporter tried one of them on my single-family home in Spotsylvania County.
The panels cost me nothing. They were installed by a private company which technically still owns them. There was a frustrating two months of delay in getting them installed and inspected. There’s a set fee of $84 a month, with a limit of a two dollar increase each year for the length of the 30-year contract. Added to that is a mandatory $8.98 (tax included) distribution service fee that is charged by Dominion each month to keep the home hooked up to the grid.
The electricity bill for March, before the panels were turned on, with no air conditioning, was $43. The panels went on line in April, and the bill from Dominion for April was simply the distribution fee of $8.98.
So, for April, with no use of the air conditioning, I paid more than in the past, a combined $98 for that month (the combination of the distribution and rental fees).
But most days, the eight panels on the roof produce more energy than the house uses until the sun goes down. Then, the house is back on the grid.
In the meantime, the panels have generated, as of this writing, 713.5 kilowatt hours of energy, which are now in the bank for when the air conditioning goes on this summer. Electricity bills in June, July, and August over the last few years have been around $200 per month. That’s when those banked kilowatt hours should pay off. The minimum bill will be $98. My solar panels should make up the difference.
Solar panels may not be for everyone, especially if your home or business uses a lot of power. If you are looking for a solar alternative, make sure you read all the fine print in the contract and watch your electric bill each month to see how much you are paying in comparison to how much the solar panel deal cost. Most deals do not come with a battery backup for grid outages, but they are usually available for an additional cost.
With the right deal, solar power on your home can pay off.
Of note: solar power, from all sources including the utility companies, provides about 8.5% of electricity in Virginia, more than coal or hydroelectric combined.
For perspective, the total power generation for Dominion in Virginia is over 18,000 megawatts from 30 power plants (this doesn’t include solar facilities) that serve the Dominion Energy Virginia service territory.
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