Brian Zinchuk is editor and owner of Pipeline Online
This video, from SaskPower’s website and hosted on YouTube, explains the current net metering program. SaskPower
REGINA – For several months, the provincial New Democratic Party has been speaking of its upcoming electricity plan. On April 7, they released an element of that plan, with a note that “The full Grid & Growth Plan will be released in the coming days.”
As part of its Grid & Growth Plan, the NDP are proposing “the creation of a Community Power Program to modernize Saskatchewan’s stalled net-metering system and give families, farmers, businesses, and communities the power to lower their bills and generate their own energy,” according to a press release.
“Net-metering” means if you produce your own power, i.e. by solar panels on your roof, or a small wind turbine, you reduce your power from the grid. And if you produce more than what you need, you feed power into the grid, literally running your meter backwards.
Here’s how SaskPower describes the current program:
Any power that you can’t use in real-time is sent to our power grid, unless a battery is used. You’ll then receive a credit rate of 7.5 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) until March 31, 2029. We’ll communicate with customers what the program will look like after this date once it’s confirmed.
How Credits Work
Each billing cycle, you’ll receive a credit for the excess power you generated and sent back to our power grid. The excess power is displayed as a dollar credit on your bill.
This is calculated by multiplying your excess generation from that cycle by our current net metering credit rate. Credits earned can only be used to offset your energy charge. You cannot take it as cash.
When you use power from our power grid, you’re charged the retail rate. This is different from the rate you receive for your excess generation. The retail rate covers extra costs such as grid infrastructure and maintenance. This is to ensure reliable power is available for all customers.
Although net metering can help reduce your power bill, it’s important to know that it will not get rid of it. The credits you receive can help offset the electricity charges on your bills.
You can’t use the credits to pay your tax or the basic monthly charge. This covers administrative and maintenance costs and applies to all SaskPower customers. Credits are carried forward for the life of your SaskPower account at that address.
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The release said, “The commitments are part of Beck’s upcoming Grid & Growth Plan and focused on delivering affordable, reliable power while unlocking investment in Saskatchewan’s solar economy. The full plan will be released in the coming days and available online for public consultation and feedback.”
“People in Saskatchewan should be able to secure their own power, lower their bills, and build stronger, more self-reliant communities,” Beck said. “Instead, the Sask. Party weakened net-metering and killed an industry. We’re bringing it back — stronger and smarter.”
Around 2019 SaskPower had substantially reduced the amount of power generation credits for new hookups of small scale wind or solar power generation would receive compared to previous programs. This, in turn, dramatically reduced the economic advantages of putting something like rooftop solar on your home, or in a field on your farm. Doing so put a major crimp on new small-scale solar installations in the province. The NDP propose to reverse that, but only to a point. They are not proposing a full 100 per cent credit for power produced.
The NDP said, “A modern and evolving Crown will ensure more people can participate and benefit by:
- Modernizing net-metering to support self-generation for households, farms, businesses, municipalities, and First Nations
- Allowing renters, low-income residents, and those without suitable rooftops to buy into shared projects and receive bill credits through a virtual co-op model
- Increasing the credit rate to 75 per cent (11.6 cents/kWh), restoring meaningful value for excess energy
- Ensuring net-metering credits rise alongside retail power rates, protecting long-term value for participants
- Enabling credit pooling across facilities through consultation with rural municipalities and First Nations, allowing communities to share benefits where they’re needed most “
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“We need to restore and modernize the net-metering program — it’s critical to Saskatchewan’s energy future,” said Jared Clarke, Environment Shadow Minister. “By supporting residential users, agricultural producers, rural municipalities and First Nations communities to turn to solar, we can lower consumer costs, strengthen our grid and enhance competitiveness.”
Aleana Young, Shadow Minister for SaskPower, said the plan is about putting people — not politics — at the centre of Saskatchewan’s energy future.
“This is about cheaper power, jobs, and a grid that works for people,” Young said. “Right now, families are facing rising costs while the Sask. Party risks even higher rates and more debt. We’re offering a practical path forward — one that puts control back in the hands of Saskatchewan people.”
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Minister responds
Minister of Crown Investments Corporation and Minister Responsible for SaskPower Jeremy Harrison responded in an email, saying, “The NDP have chosen to recycle the same unsustainable and ideologically driven plan first pushed by Ryan Meili when he was NDP leader and which was roundly rejected by the Saskatchewan public. The NDP program is unsustainable and would do nothing but drive up costs for other ratepayers.
“Paying inflated credits for excess power creates a system where families, seniors, and small businesses who can’t participate would be subsidizing those who can. That’s not fair, and it’s not responsible.
“We’ve seen in other jurisdictions that when energy policy is driven by ideology instead of practicality, the result is higher costs and added pressure on the grid.
“Saskatchewan won’t go down that path.
“SaskPower will continue to support customer self-generation — but in a way that keeps power reliable, rates affordable, and the system fair for everyone.”
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