Electricity 101
In order to understand and impact your electric bill using the Wind Sphere™ wind energy system, it's important to first understand what electricity is. It's a form of energy that can be converted into heat, light, motion and sound.
About Your Bill:
The two most important ways to describe electric use are how much is used (kilowatt-hours) and how quickly it is used (kilowatts), often called demand. These two components - energy and demand - are the basic parts of most commercial electric bills.
Your electric rate tariff found on your utility's website will show how much your facility is charged for:
- On-peak and off-peak use in dollars per kWh, and
- Peak demand in dollars per kW.
Your bill might have multiple charges per kWh (e.g., one for the "base rate", another for "fuel") and you have to add them all up to get the total cost per kWh. Most utility companies charge a higher rate when you use more than a certain amount of energy, and they also charge more during summer months when electric use is higher. There are also fixed charges that you pay every month no matter how much electricity you use, called the customer charge. In a net-metering scenario, these charges are unavoidable, even if you offset all of your electric usage through on-site generation.
Sizing Your System:
For net metering applications, the wind turbine rating (i.e. Wind Sphere35kW) should not exceed your building's kW demand. This is located on your bill.
Impacting Your Bill:
Please note, because wind does not always blow when electricity is needed, the Wind Sphere™ cannot reliably impact the kW demand charges. A wind turbine investment decision should be based upon its ability to generate electrical output, and not necessarily its kW rating. The Wind Sphere™ will help to offset energy usage charges, or charges associated with your kilowatt-hours. Given this fact, if your company has more than one meter, it is best to net-meter the Wind Sphere™ wind power system at the meter with a usage-driven (kWh) tariff, not a demand-driven (kW) tariff.