Short answer: if your solar system is sized so it does not generate more electricity in a year than you use, you can connect it as a micro-generator through your wires company. Any kilowatt-hours you export are credited on your bill at a rate your retailer sets, not the government. That rate varies enormously — typical Alberta export credits run 8 to 10¢/kWh, while the Get Energy Solar Club credits exports at 35.00¢/kWh until December 2028.
Regulation details verified against Alberta.ca and the Alberta Utilities Commission. Get Energy rates from our live rate sheet. Last updated August 20, 2026.
What the Micro-generation Regulation actually says
Alberta’s Micro-generation Regulation, made under the Electric Utilities Act, lets you generate your own electricity from renewable or alternative sources and feed the surplus back into the grid. Three points matter for a homeowner:
- Sizing. The system must be sized to meet your own electricity needs. In practice that means annual production must not exceed the site’s annual consumption, based on your historical usage.
- Interconnection. Your distribution company — ATCO Electric, FortisAlberta, EPCOR or ENMAX, depending on your address — reviews the application, approves it, installs the bi-directional meter and supplies the meter data. You do not choose your wires company, and you do not pay for the ordinary and reasonable costs of interconnection and metering; those are shared across all customers in that service area.
- Crediting. Small micro-generators, meaning systems under 150 kW, are credited monthly for exported electricity. Your retailer handles the administration and billing of those credits. The Alberta Utilities Commission oversees the regulation and hears disputes.
Systems must also demonstrate emissions of 418 kg/MWh or less. Solar clears that comfortably.
The part most people miss: your retailer sets the export rate
Alberta.ca states it plainly — the rate at which you are credited is agreed between you and your electricity retailer, and the government does not decide what that rate should be. This is the single largest variable in the economics of residential solar in this province, and it is the one almost nobody compares before signing.
| Export credit | Value of 1,000 exported kWh |
| Typical Alberta retailer, 8¢/kWh | $80 |
| Typical Alberta retailer, 10¢/kWh | $100 |
| Get Energy Solar Club, 35.00¢/kWh (available until December 2028) | $350 |
Because you can change retailers without touching your panels, your interconnection or your meter, the export rate is a decision you can revisit at any time. That is worth knowing before you accept whatever rate came bundled with your installer’s paperwork.
How the credit shows up on your bill
Your meter records two numbers each month: electricity you imported from the grid and electricity you exported to it. You are billed for imports at your energy rate and credited for exports at your export rate. Then the rest of the bill lands as usual.
- Credits offset the energy portion first. If your credit exceeds your energy charge, the surplus normally carries forward as a credit balance on the account.
- Delivery charges do not go away. Transmission and distribution charges, the fixed daily charge from your wires company, local access fees, riders, your retailer’s administration fee (ours is $9.97 per month) and GST all still apply. Solar reduces the energy line, not the whole bill.
- Credits do not vanish at year end under the regulation. There is no provincial rule wiping your balance annually, but individual retailer contracts differ on how long a credit balance rolls forward and whether it can ever be paid out in cash rather than carried. Read that clause before you sign anything.
Alberta has no time-of-use residential pricing, so it makes no difference to your credit what hour of the day you export. What matters is the total kilowatt-hours and the rate.
What Alberta solar actually produces
Plan on roughly 1,150 kWh per year for every kilowatt of installed capacity. A typical straightforward residential install from our installer partners runs about $2.80 per watt installed before any incentive.
The seasonal swing is the thing to understand. Production peaks in May and bottoms out in December, and the gap between best and worst month is roughly five to one. Your consumption does the opposite — short dark days, more lighting, furnace fans running. So a system that runs a large surplus in June may still leave you importing heavily in December. That is normal, and it is exactly why the export rate and the credit rollover rules matter so much: summer credits are what carry you through winter.
The application steps, in order
- 1. Check your consumption. Pull 12 months of kWh from your bills. That number caps the system size you can be approved for.
- 2. Get a design and quote. A qualified electrical contractor sizes the array against that annual consumption and prepares a site plan.
- 3. Municipal permits. Electrical permit at minimum; some municipalities want more.
- 4. Notify your distribution company and submit the micro-generation application. Follow the AUC’s guidelines; the application is submitted through the AUC eFiling system and to your distribution company.
- 5. Sign the interconnection agreement with the distribution company.
- 6. Install and inspect. Work is inspected before it can be energized.
- 7. Meter exchange and permission to operate. The wires company swaps in a bi-directional meter.
- 8. Sort out your retailer. Confirm your export rate in writing and how credits roll forward. Do this step properly — it is worth more money than any other decision on this list.
Common mistakes
- Oversizing. A system that would generate more than your annual use will not be approved as micro-generation, and the extra panels earn you nothing.
- Assuming the bill goes to zero. Delivery charges and fixed fees survive solar. See what it costs to run a house in Alberta for how the pieces stack up.
- Not comparing export rates. The difference between 8¢ and 35¢ on the same array is the difference between a long payback and a reasonable one.
- Sizing to a future EV you have not bought. Approval is based on historical consumption, not plans.
- Ignoring the import rate. You still buy power for most of the winter, so your regular electricity rate matters as much as your credit. Ours are on the live rate sheet.
If you want the broader economics rather than the mechanics, read are solar panels worth it in Alberta. If you are weighing a switch, how to switch electricity providers covers what actually happens.
Frequently asked questions
Who sets the solar export credit rate in Alberta?
Your electricity retailer does. Alberta.ca states that the credit rate is agreed between the customer and the retailer and that the government does not set it. Typical Alberta export credits run about 8 to 10 cents per kilowatt-hour. The Get Energy Solar Club rate is 35.00 cents per kilowatt-hour, available until December 2028.
How big a solar system can I install in Alberta?
Under the Micro-generation Regulation the system must be sized to meet your own needs, meaning annual production cannot exceed the site’s annual consumption. Alberta solar produces roughly 1,150 kWh per year per kilowatt of installed capacity, so 12 months of billing history effectively sets your maximum size.
Do solar credits eliminate my whole electricity bill?
No. Credits offset the energy portion of the bill. Transmission and distribution charges, fixed daily wires charges, local access fees, riders, the retailer administration fee and GST still apply.
Do unused solar credits expire?
The Micro-generation Regulation does not force an annual reset, and surplus credits normally carry forward as a credit balance. How long they roll forward, and whether they can ever be paid out, depends on your retailer contract, so check that clause before signing.
Who connects my solar system to the grid?
Your distribution company, which is assigned by address: ATCO Electric, FortisAlberta, EPCOR or ENMAX. It reviews and approves the application, installs the bi-directional meter and supplies meter data. Ordinary and reasonable interconnection and metering costs are shared across all customers in that service area rather than billed to you.
Can I switch retailers after my solar is installed?
Yes. Your panels, interconnection agreement and meter stay in place. Switching retailers changes the rate you pay for imported power and the credit you receive for exports.
Sources
- Government of Alberta — Micro-generation — regulation overview, sizing principle, monthly crediting under 150 kW, interconnection cost treatment, and confirmation that retailers set the credit rate. Retrieved August 20, 2026.
- Alberta King’s Printer — Micro-generation Regulation (AR 27/2008) — the regulation text itself. Retrieved August 20, 2026.
- Alberta Utilities Commission — Micro-generation — application guidelines, eFiling process and AUC oversight. Retrieved August 20, 2026.
- Utilities Consumer Advocate — Micro-generation — consumer-facing explanation of billing and credits. Retrieved August 20, 2026.
- Get Energy live rate sheet — current electricity rates and the $9.97 monthly administration fee quoted above.
Get Energy is a competitive retailer offering electricity and natural gas services for residential, small business, and farm consumers across Alberta. Get Energy is a tradename of Utility Network & Partners Inc.
Prices move week to week. Our Alberta Energy Market Report tracks wholesale power prices, the natural gas reference price and retail rate movement every Monday.
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