What value does the grid provide to those producing their own power?

The grid enables the customer to get energy when it’s needed and send energy back to the grid when the customer is producing more than they need. The grid serves as a reliable source of high-quality power in the event of disruptions to a customer’s system. This includes compensating for the variable output of solar and wind generation. In the case of solar, the amount of energy produced varies during overcast conditions or fast-moving clouds. And, of course, solar panels provide no generation at night.

The grid serves as a crucial balancing resource available for whatever period – from seconds to hours to days and seasons – to offset variable and uncertain output from distributed generation resources.