Owen Electric Cooperative and solar
Owen Electric Cooperative is an electric cooperative serving about 65,069 homes in Kentucky. Here's what its rates and export rules mean for solar: for a typical customer, solar is not worth it.
- Average price (2026 est.)
- 13.4¢4% below Kentucky average
- Typical bill
- $1531,149 kWh a month
- Exports credited
- ~56%Net billing (reduced export credit)
- Typical payback
- 19.3 yrs5.1 kW, cash
Export rules for Owen Electric Cooperative customers
Net billing (reduced export credit) (Kentucky rule).
Kentucky requires net metering for systems up to 45 kW, but since SB 100 (2019) the PSC sets the export credit in each utility's rate case. For the big investor-owned utilities, power you send to the grid earns a bill credit of roughly 7-10 cents/kWh, well below the retail rate.
Solar for a typical Owen Electric Cooperative home
| System | 5.1 kW (50% of 1,149 kWh/month) |
|---|---|
| Cost | $15,485 |
| First-year savings | $813 |
| Payback | 19.3 years |
| 25-year net | $5,724 |
Uses the utility's average price.
Solar adoption
- Homes with solar (2025)
- 462
- Share of customers
- 0.7%
- Residential solar capacity
- 4 MW
- Residential customers
- 65,069
EIA-861, 2025.
Questions about Owen Electric Cooperative and solar
Does Owen Electric Cooperative have net metering?
Owen Electric Cooperative follows Kentucky's rules: Kentucky requires net metering for systems up to 45 kW, but since SB 100 (2019) the PSC sets the export credit in each utility's rate case. For the big investor-owned utilities, power you send to the grid earns a bill credit of roughly 7-10 cents/kWh, well below the retail rate.
How much does electricity cost with Owen Electric Cooperative?
Residential customers paid an average of 12.6¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA), about 13.4¢ adjusted to 2026. The typical home uses 1,149 kWh a month, a bill of about $153.
Is solar worth it with Owen Electric Cooperative?
For a typical customer, solar is not worth it: a 5.1 kW system costing about $15,485 pays back in about 19.3 years, with $5,724 net over 25 years.
How many Owen Electric Cooperative customers have solar?
About 462 homes had net-metered solar at the end of 2025, roughly 0.7% of residential customers (EIA-861).
Legal name: Owen Electric Coop Inc (EIA ID 14251). Data: EIA-861 2025 and monthly data through 2026, state policy research October 2026.