Typical customer: Not worth it

Carroll Electric Member and solar

Carroll Electric Member is an electric cooperative serving about 53,707 homes in Georgia. Here's what its rates and export rules mean for solar: for a typical customer, solar is not worth it.

Average price (2026 est.)
14.3¢5% below Georgia average
Typical bill
$1731,212 kWh a month
Exports credited
~50%Reduced export credit
Typical payback
17.7 yrs5.1 kW, cash

Export rules for Carroll Electric Member customers

Reduced export credit (Georgia rule).

Georgia has no full net metering for new customers. Georgia Power credits solar you use at home at retail, and pays about 7.2 cents/kWh in 2026 for power sent to the grid (its solar avoided cost plus a 4-cent adder). Its monthly net metering program is full and closed. Electric membership cooperatives (EMCs) generally pay avoided cost.

Georgia net metering details

Solar for a typical Carroll Electric Member home

System5.1 kW (50% of 1,212 kWh/month)
Cost$15,740
First-year savings$902
Payback17.7 years
25-year net$8,091

Uses the utility's average price.

Solar adoption

Homes with solar (2025)
223
Share of customers
0.4%
Residential solar capacity
2 MW
Residential customers
53,707

EIA-861, 2025.

Questions about Carroll Electric Member and solar

Does Carroll Electric Member have net metering?

Carroll Electric Member follows Georgia's rules: Georgia has no full net metering for new customers. Georgia Power credits solar you use at home at retail, and pays about 7.2 cents/kWh in 2026 for power sent to the grid (its solar avoided cost plus a 4-cent adder). Its monthly net metering program is full and closed. Electric membership cooperatives (EMCs) generally pay avoided cost.

How much does electricity cost with Carroll Electric Member?

Residential customers paid an average of 13.9¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA), about 14.3¢ adjusted to 2026. The typical home uses 1,212 kWh a month, a bill of about $173.

Is solar worth it with Carroll Electric Member?

For a typical customer, solar is not worth it: a 5.1 kW system costing about $15,740 pays back in about 17.7 years, with $8,091 net over 25 years.

How many Carroll Electric Member customers have solar?

About 223 homes had net-metered solar at the end of 2025, roughly 0.4% of residential customers (EIA-861).

Legal name: Carroll Electric Member Corp - (GA) (EIA ID 3081). Data: EIA-861 2025 and monthly data through 2026, state policy research October 2026.