SRP Solar Plans: Demand Charges and Export Credits

Separate SRP solar demand charges, netting and export credits, understand kW versus kWh, and identify the account data needed for a fair plan comparison.

Sources reviewed: 2026-10-10

Confirm SRP service and the exact plan

Use the utility name and price-plan name on the actual bill. A Phoenix-area address does not establish SRP rather than APS service, and an APS Resource Comparison Proxy rate is not an SRP credit. Ask SRP which solar plans this account and proposed equipment can use; a plan displayed online is not a guarantee of eligibility.

The reviewed comparison page lists several solar options, including Customer Generation, Average Demand, Time-of-Use Export and Electric Vehicle Export, alongside newer options. Some combine demand and export features. Treat the SRP solar-plan comparison as an index of plans, not a universal recommendation that one arrangement suits all homes.

Separate energy in kWh from demand in kW

Energy measures use over time; demand measures the rate of grid power use over a defined interval. SRP's Customer Generation explanation describes demand charges based on 30-minute on-peak intervals. The relevant meter quantity is supplied grid power, not the panel array's advertised capacity or the home's entire annual consumption.

For an original arithmetic example, 2 kWh supplied over half an hour corresponds to an average 4 kW during that interval. Two households can have equal monthly kWh but different interval demand if one runs large appliances together. This does not reproduce SRP's complete billing-demand calculation. Source: Customer Generation demand explanation.

Demand-based plans require the correct demand definition

Customer Generation and Average Demand have their own demand treatment and rates. Do not apply the same peak statistic to every demand plan or infer the total bill from the lowest advertised per-kWh price. Energy charges, demand charges, service charges and applicable adjustments must be evaluated together.

Read the Customer Generation plan and Average Demand plan for the assigned arrangement. The reviewed Average Demand page also identifies discontinuation as of the November 2029 billing cycle. That is a reason to check current eligibility and future treatment, not a guarantee that a new customer can enroll or keep today's prices unchanged.

Export-based billing is not retail-valued kWh netting

SRP's Time-of-Use Export explanation says this plan has no monthly demand charge and separately tracks delivered and exported kWh on an instantaneous basis. Grid purchases follow the applicable time periods, while accumulated eligible exports receive the stated export credit. Other bill components still need review; no demand charge does not mean no service charge.

The reviewed page lists a fixed export credit of 3.45 cents per kWh. For an original hypothetical example, 400 eligible exported kWh multiplied by $0.0345 gives $13.80 before actual billing treatment. It is an export-credit illustration, not a total bill or guaranteed future rate. Source: SRP Time-of-Use Export plan.

Netting and exported-energy credits are different operations

The Time-of-Use Export page contrasts its separate measurements with net metering on Customer Generation and Average Demand, where excess kWh is subtracted from delivered kWh to obtain a net quantity under the plan. These are different billing operations, even when the same roof produces the same annual energy.

A proposal cannot safely value all inverter production at either the export credit or one retail price. Direct self-use is not a meter-recorded export, and imported energy may occur in different time periods. Use the SRP netting comparison and obtain the actual plan's current rules rather than extending this short explanation into a bill simulator.

Time periods and temporary adjustments need a dated check

The reviewed Customer Generation and Average Demand pages describe seasonal on-peak periods. Other plans can have different windows, so a household's appliance schedule must be compared to its assigned plan rather than a remembered statewide peak period. A seasonal meter-read rule can also affect which rates are applied to a billing cycle.

SRP's reviewed pages flag a temporary $0.0038 per-kWh reduction during the May through October 2026 billing cycles. The comparison page links some detailed information that excludes the temporary reduction. Therefore an apparent price difference may partly reflect inconsistent adjustment treatment. Check the comparison-page notes and Customer Generation billing explanation before comparing dollar results.

A battery can affect timing but does not establish payback

Storage may shift some energy away from immediate export or reduce grid purchases during selected periods. Its actual effect depends on power limits, usable capacity, efficiency, reserve settings and control behavior. A battery capable of backup does not automatically eliminate a defined demand peak or operate in the most valuable billing periods.

SRP's solar-plan comparison includes storage customers, but that does not supply a personalized dispatch or payback calculation. Our battery guide explains the equipment questions. Require a dated model using the applicable demand and export definitions, and do not assume a tax credit or unverified incentive.

Build a comparison from account data, not annual production alone

Request the confirmed plan, a full year of bills, available time-resolved imports and exports, applicable demand statistics, current adjustments and the proposed system's operating assumptions. Compare all bill components over the same period. Ask SRP about eligibility and the implications of changing plans before treating an online estimate as an enrollment decision.

Use the official plan comparison with the actual account information. Our annual energy-flow calculator explains approximate self-use and exports in kWh; it does not calculate SRP demand charges, temporary adjustments or a cheapest plan. The quote analyzer helps compare proposal inputs without certifying the utility forecast.