SRP Solar Plans

There are four SRP Solar Plans to choose from when you go solar in the SRP territory:

1. Customer Generation Plan (E-27)
2. Average Demand Plan (E-15)
3. Time-of-Use Export Plan (E-13)
4. Electric Vehicle Export Plan (E-14)

The SRP Solar Plan you choose will affect the amount of savings you enjoy after going solar. Unfortunately, choosing your SRP Solar Plan can be a complicated and frustrating process. But, after reading this article, you will have a full understanding of the SRP Solar Plans. Also, See the Glossary for definitions of the terms used in this article. Below we will cover the important components of the SRP Solar Plans.

See our page on SRP or the SRP Website for more information on the electric utility.

SRP Solar Plans – Time of Use

All four SRP Solar Plans have two Time-of-Use segments: On-Peak and Off-Peak.

The On-Peak times in the Winter (November through April) are 5AM to 9PM and 5PM to 9PM. Also, On-Peak times in the Summer (May, June, September, October) are 2PM to 8PM. Finally, On-Peak times in the Summer Peak (July, August) are 2PM to 8PM.

Off-Peak times are weekends and certain holidays. In addition, the Electric Vehicle Export Plan has an additional Time-of-Use segment called Super Off-Peak which is every day from 11PM to 5AM. Further, On-Peak times have the highest usage charges, Off-Peak times have the mid-range usage charges, and Super Off-Peak times have the lowest usage charges.

See our page on SRP On-Peak Hours and SRP Off-Peak Hours for more information on this.

Holidays Included as Off-Peak

The following holidays are considered Off-Peak in the SRP Solar Plans. This is true no matter what time of day and day of the week they fall on, unless otherwise noted:

1. New Year’s Day
2. Memorial Day
3. Independence Day
4. Labor Day
5. Thanksgiving Day
6. Christmas Day

SRP Solar Plans – Seasonal Energy Rates

The SRP Solar Plans define Winter as November through April, Summer as May, June, September, and October, and Summer Peak as July and August. Usage charges are the highest in Summer Peak and the lowest in Winter.

Plan Comparison

SRP Solar Plans – Choosing the Right Plan

Choosing the right plan after going solar depends on what SRP Plan you had before solar and your habits of using energy in your home. We will cover the SRP Solar Plans in detail below. Also, we will give our recommendations on which plans make sense in different circumstances.

For more information on SRP Plans, see our page on SRP Plans Before Solar.

Customer Generation Plan (E-27)

The Customer Generation Plan is one of the more popular SRP Solar Plans because it offers the lowest Usage Charges.

The trade-off for lower Usage Charges is a Demand Charge that is more expensive than the Average Demand Plan. The Average Demand Plan calculates the Demand Charge by taking the average of all the highest On-Peak demand readings during the month. However, the Customer Generation Plan takes the very highest On-Peak demand reading, instead of the average. Thus, this results in much higher demand charges on your bill.

Due to this possibility of having very high Demand Charges, most customers receive a Demand Manager as part of their solar panel system purchase. This device automatically limits the home’s energy usage during On-Peak times. This allows customers to enjoy the low Usage Charges of this plan while avoiding the high Demand Charges.

In fact, we recommend the Customer Generation Plan and a Demand Manager device to most of our SRP customers that are going solar. This combination will save them the most amount of money in SRP territory. 

For more detailed information on the Customer Generation Plan, see SRP’s Customer Generation Price Plan Sheet.

Average Demand Plan (E-15)

The Average Demand Plan has a Demand Charge that is calculated by averaging the highest On-Peak demand readings throughout the month. SRP tracks demand in 30-minute periods during On-Peak times. All the periods with the highest demand are averaged together and then multiplied to calculate the monthly Demand Charge.

This plan averages all the peak demand readings over the billing period. Thus, of the SRP Solar Plans, this one is suited for families that occasionally have big variations in their demand. For example, a family may have a typical peak demand of 5 kW, but occasionally the demand goes to 10 kW or more. On the Customer Generation Plan, the family would be charged at 10 kW because that was the peak demand for the month. On the Average Demand Plan, the family won’t be punished for having one period of high demand. This is because the high demand periods are averaged out when calculating the Demand Charge.

For more detailed information on the Average Demand Plan, see SRP’s Average Demand Price Plan Sheet.

Time-of-Use Export Plan (E-13)

The Time-of-Use Export Plan has higher Usage Charges than the two Demand SRP Solar Plans. However, it does not have a Demand Charge. Also, solar customers receive an Export Credit of 2.81 cents on this plan, instead of the Net Metering received with the Demand plans. This plan has very high On-Peak usage charges. So, solar customers can save money with the Time-of-Use Export Plan by limiting their On-Peak energy usage as much as possible.

For more detailed information on the Time-of-Use Export Plan, see SRP’s Time-of-Use Export Price Plan Sheet.

Electric Vehicle Export Plan (E-14)

The Electric Vehicle Export Plan does not have a Demand Charge and is best for customers that own electric vehicles. This plan is almost identical to the Time-Of-Use Export Plan, but it adds the low-cost Super Off-Peak hours from 11PM to 5AM. So, customers can inexpensively charge their electric vehicles during these times. Also, to save the most money, customers should use a timer that only allows the vehicle to charge during Super Off-Peak times. Additionally, customers can set their timer-based appliances, like the dishwasher and pool pump, to run during Super Off-Peak hours to save money.

For more detailed information on the Electric Vehicle Export Plan, see SRP’s Electric Vehicle Export Price Plan Sheet.