If you already have solar, you've probably heard that North Carolina's net metering rules are changing.
For many homeowners, that immediately raises a concerning question: What happens to the solar credits I've earned?
Will they disappear? Will they be worth less? Will my savings decrease?
The good news is that your credits aren't simply going away overnight. However, the value of excess solar production is changing, and understanding those changes can help you maximize your savings moving forward.
And, for many existing solar customers, battery storage is becoming one of the most effective ways to protect and optimize the value of their solar investment.
How Solar Credits Work Today
Most solar systems produce the majority of their electricity during the middle of the day.
When your home isn't using all of that energy, the excess electricity is sent back to the grid.
In return, Duke Energy provides credits that can help offset electricity you use later.
Many homeowners think of the grid as a "virtual battery." Excess solar production is deposited into the grid during sunny periods and used to offset energy purchases when solar production is lower.
This system has been a major factor in the financial success of residential solar throughout North Carolina.
What Happens to Existing Solar Credits?
One of the most common misconceptions is that homeowners will suddenly lose all of their accumulated credits when net metering changes.
That's not how the transition works.
In fact, under legacy net metering, many homeowners already experience an annual true-up process in which unused credits are reset each May.
The bigger issue isn't whether your existing credits disappear.
The more important question is: How valuable will future solar credits be?
That's where the net metering changes become more significant.
Why the Value of Solar Credits Is Changing
The biggest change isn't that solar credits disappear.
It's that excess solar production will be compensated differently than it was under legacy net metering.
Under traditional net metering, excess solar production could offset future electricity usage at the full retail rate. In other words, if Duke Energy charged you 15 cents per kilowatt-hour for electricity, a kilowatt-hour of excess solar production would offset a kilowatt-hour purchased later at roughly the same value. And, when your system produced excess electricity in the longer summer days, your credits accumulated at the full retail rate to help offset the lower production of the darker winter days, before the annual reset in May.
Under new rate structures, excess energy that exceeds your consumption during a billing cycle won't roll over to the next one, but rather will be credited at Duke Energy's wholesale rate.
While wholesale rates vary, they are typically much lower than the retail rate homeowners pay for electricity.
To put it in perspective, after taxes and rider adjustments, Duke Energy's electricity currently costs roughly 15 cents per kilowatt-hour at the retail rate, but excess solar production is credited at approximately 4 cents per kilowatt-hour. This makes exporting energy becomes significantly less valuable than using that energy directly in your home.
That's why the economics of solar are shifting from produce as much as possible to use as much of your own solar energy as possible.
The solar panels on your roof still generate the same amount of electricity. What's changing is the value of sending excess energy back to the grid.
Key Takeaway: Under legacy net metering, excess solar production could often offset future electricity purchases at the full retail rate. Under newer structures, excess production may receive a wholesale credit instead, making self-consumption and battery storage significantly more valuable.
The Biggest Shift: Self-Consumption Becomes More Valuable
Under future rate structures, the most valuable kilowatt-hour may be the one you never have to buy from Duke Energy.
Every unit of solar energy you use directly inside your home avoids future electricity purchases and potential rate increases.
This is why many energy experts now focus on self-consumption rather than simply maximizing exports.
The goal is no longer just generating solar energy.
The goal is using that solar energy strategically.
Why Battery Storage Is Becoming More Valuable
For many homeowners, battery storage is the logical next step.
| Without a Battery | With a Battery |
|---|---|
| Excess solar energy is exported to the grid | Excess solar production is stored on-site |
| Credits are received based on the applicable rate structure |
Grid purchases can be reduced during higher-cost periods |
| Evening energy needs are supplied by Duke Energy | Stored energy can be used after sunset |
| More of your solar production stays under your control |
Key Takeaway: As utility rates continue to rise and compensation structures evolve, battery storage can help homeowners capture more value from the energy they already produce.
A Battery Can Help You:
- Increase solar self-consumption
- Reduce reliance on future utility rate changes
- Improve performance under evolving net metering structures
- Provide backup power during outages
- Charge from excess daytime solar production
- Reduce purchases during peak-rate periods
For many existing solar customers, batteries are transitioning from a resiliency upgrade to an economic upgrade.
Example: Solar With and Without a Battery
Consider a homeowner whose solar system produces significant excess energy during the afternoon but whose family uses most of their electricity during Duke Energy's peak evening hours.
Without a battery, their solar energy is exported at the low, off-peak retail rate and the majority of their energy is purchased from the utility at the high, on-peak retail rate. They already aren't offsetting their consumption at the equivalent rate of their production, not to mention that any kWhs over the number of kWhs they consume are credited at the lowest rate--the wholesale rate.
Now, consider this same family with the same amount of kWhs produced and the same number of kWhs consumed during the same peak evening hours. But, now, they have a battery.
This family now produces their excess energy in the afternoon and stores it in their battery. In the evening, when they use most of their electricity, they pull it directly from the battery, bypassing the grid entirely.
Utility rates don't matter at this point, because the system is designed to be a closed-loop system.
The solar panels haven't changed. The strategy has.
Should You Add a Battery to Your Existing Solar System?
A battery may be worth considering if:
- Your system regularly exports large amounts of energy
- You use most of your electricity after sunset
- You own an electric vehicle
- You work outside the home during the day
- You want backup power
- You're concerned about future utility rate increases
Every home is different, which is why a personalized analysis is important.
The answer depends on your solar production, usage patterns, and future energy goals.
The Best Way to Understand Your Savings Potential
Rather than guessing how future net metering changes will affect your home, it's possible to model the impact using your actual production and consumption data.
By reviewing your solar generation, energy usage patterns, and export history, you can see:
- How much energy you're exporting today
- How future rate structures may affect savings
- Whether battery storage could improve your economics
- Which strategy maximizes long-term value
The Bottom Line
North Carolina's net metering changes don't mean solar stops working.
They do mean that how you capture value from your solar system is changing.
For many homeowners, the future isn't about earning more solar credits, it's about keeping more of their solar energy.
Battery storage can help make that possible by allowing you to store excess production, reduce future utility purchases, and gain greater control over your energy costs.
Curious How the Changes Could Affect Your Home?
Request a free consultation from Cape Fear Energy Systems to see how a battery could help maximize your savings after 2026.
We'll review your solar production, energy usage patterns, and battery opportunities to help you understand how Duke Energy's evolving net metering rules may impact your long-term savings.