[walnutclosefarm]

That's how my distributed generation contract with our Rural Electric Cooperative works. We pay $50/month for the connection, but the actual use/generation is 1 for 1 net metering. We are limited in how much generation we can connect to 105% of our average annual consumption, so over the course of year, on average, we zero out energy costs. If we want to connect more distributed generation than that, the tariff shifts to we get wholesale for what we sell, pay retail for what we use.

[gh02t]

Is the $50/month prorated into the cost if you end up net consuming for the grid? Or are any costs on top of that?

[walnutclosefarm]

We pay $50 per month real money for the service, regardless of the net metering. If we are net producers in a given month, we pay nothing additional for power, and get a credit (in kwh) that rolls forward to the next month. If we are net users, after applying any rolled forward credits, we pay for the net usage in addition to the $50. Once a year, any rolled forward credits not used are paid to us at what amounts to wholesale rates, so we start over with zero credit balance.