The new NV Energy rate structure set to take effect in October continues to draw pushback from solar advocates.
NV Energy's proposed daily demand charge would bill customers based on their highest 15-minute burst of electricity use each day — a structure critics say is difficult to manage and could penalize even the most energy-conscious customers.
Watch: Climate Reporter Geneva Zoltek follows the fallout from the 'Daily Demand Charge'
"It's a peak rate that occurs any moment in a 24-hour period. So even if you try your best to even out all of your usage, a tiny, tiny, little spike will still trigger a demand charge," said Alice Barnum, a Las Vegas local who co-owns a solar business with her husband Chris.
Chris and Alice have built a large local following — and expanded their business — on social media by posting videos about rooftop panels, batteries, and energy policy to keep others informed about their electricity use. They say interest in alternatives has surged as customers grow concerned about NV Energy's plans.
"In a place like Las Vegas with this much sunlight, solar works," Alice said.
"I think it's just growing really fast nowadays, especially with where the rates are at, what NV Energy is planning on doing. A lot of people are just asking what are our options to step away from that, and we're just offering that information to people," Chris Barnum said.
The Barnums have also testified before Nevada's Public Utility Commission, arguing the demand charge would disproportionately harm vulnerable residents.
"Basically letting them know that this is harming low-income families, this is harming working families, veterans, retirees," Alice said.
"At the same time, the commissioners just turned around and approved it. What that told me is that these public hearings were pretty much for show," she continued.
NV Energy has defended the charge, citing what it describes as an estimate of $100 million annual cost shift it says is tied to rooftop solar customers. In a statement, spokesperson Katie Nannini cited a 2025 PUCN determination stating that "it is not disputed that some costs to serve [solar] customers are currently being paid by other customers."
The utility argues that solar customers reduce their net energy purchases through bill credits, allowing them to avoid contributing to a significant portion of the fixed costs of delivering electricity and maintaining the grid — costs that are then passed on to non-solar customers.
Not everyone agrees.
Rate design expert and economist Ahmad Faruqui said home solar could actually save utilities money over time.
"The utilities, as we all know, make money based on how much they sell. They make money on how much investment they make in generation, transmission, and distribution. When you have solar becoming a larger share of the market, the utility doesn't need to invest as much, particularly in transmission," Faruqui said.
He added that when solar customers export excess power back to the grid, it often stays in the neighborhood.
"And as a result of that, less load is being placed on the transmission and distribution lines, so the other customers who don't have solar are going to benefit in the long run because utility investments will go down, which means rates will go down," he continued.
Faruqui said NV Energy's attribution of budgetary shortfalls to home solar runs contradictory to the state's clean energy mandates. Nevada voters approved a constitutional amendment requiring NV Energy to source 50% of its energy portfolio from renewable sources by 2030.
"Why are you discouraging solar on the customer side when you have an aggressive renewable target? It sounds like pushing the accelerator and the brake pedal at the same time," Faruqui said.
NV Energy said in a statement that the Daily Demand Charge is not intended to have that effect.
Daily Demand charge is not intended to discourage rooftop solar or renewable adoption. Rather, it is designed to:
- Better align rates with how customers use the grid, particularly their contribution to system peak demand
- Ensure that all customers contribute equitably to the fixed costs of maintaining the grid infrastructure they rely on, regardless of how much energy they self‑generate over the course of a month.
NV Energy also noted that it has not provided incentives for new rooftop solar installations since around 2019 — when those programs sunset — and that new systems installed after that point do not provide the utility with Renewable Energy Credits that count toward the state's RPS requirement.
The utility said it anticipates exceeding the RPS percentage required for 2025 when it files its compliance report in April 2026, and noted that as of the end of 2024, nearly 47% of the energy it provided came from renewable sources — ahead of the state law requirement of 34% renewable by 2024. NV Energy said it has met or exceeded the RPS standard every year since 1997.
As we've reported, the Public Utilities Commission is facing several lawsuits — including a legal complaint from the Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection — over the approval of the daily demand charge rate case.
The delay in the charge's implementation may buy time, but it has not resolved the disputes or community concerns. For customers watching the debate unfold, the stakes remain high as affordability remains top-of-mind.
