The residential solar industry in the United States has been struggling over the past two years as rising interest rates and regulatory changes have squeezed the value offered to customers.

Emphases mine. I would love to go solar, but after looking into setting up net-metering with my electric company, I'd have to go full off-grid to make it worth it. The way my power company has that setup is such a racket. I could produce 200 KW/h more than I used, and still end up with an ~$80 power bill.

It varies, but here is the current arrangement as described to me by my power company (I made them explain this to me twice because I could not believe it):

• They install a second meter that your PV system ties into. Only your PV can hook into this. It's configured to meter the power flowing out at wholesale rates. There is a monthly "meter fee" for this (same as your meter fee for your regular hookup - approx $12/mo)
• All your local usage has to go through your regular meter at retail rates.
• The PV goes out the wholesale meter and back into your retail meter; excess goes to grid
• You're billed normally on your regular meter
• Power company credits you at whoesale rate for the amount fed through the PV meter.

So, in effect, you generate power, ship it out at wholesale rate, and then buy it back from yourself at retail with the power company pocketing the difference. I had assumed that any local usage would be kept local and the difference credited at wholesale, but that is not how they do it (or at least as of 2019 when I last checked).

Example + Assumptions:

• Monthly power consumption is 1,000 KW/h
• 5 KW PV system that, unrealistically, produces full power 8 hours a day, 30 days a month
• Retail rate of $0.25 per KW/h (my current rate)
• Wholesale rate of $0.16/KWh (guessing on this, but it's proportionate to the wholesale rate I was quoted when my retail rate was $0.14/KWh several years ago)

5 KW * 8 hours/day * 30 days/mo = 1200 KW/h PV at $0.16/KWh = $192 - $12 meter fee = $180 bill credit

1000 KWh usage * $0.25/KWh = $250 + $12 meter fee = $262 bill

$262 - $180 = $82 bill even though you produced 200 more KW/h than you used.