Typical customer: Not worth it

Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation and solar

Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation is an electric cooperative serving about 182,849 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.)
13.2¢13% below Georgia average
Typical bill
$1571,191 kWh a month
Exports credited
~55%Reduced export credit
Typical payback
19.1 yrs5 kW, cash

Export rules for Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation 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 Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation home

System5 kW (50% of 1,191 kWh/month)
Cost$15,500
First-year savings$824
Payback19.1 years
25-year net$5,885

Uses the utility's average price.

Solar adoption

Homes with solar (2025)
630
Share of customers
0.3%
Residential solar capacity
4 MW
Residential customers
182,849

EIA-861, 2025.

Questions about Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation and solar

Does Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation have net metering?

Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation 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 Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation?

Residential customers paid an average of 12.8¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA), about 13.2¢ adjusted to 2026. The typical home uses 1,191 kWh a month, a bill of about $157.

Is solar worth it with Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation?

For a typical customer, solar is not worth it: a 5 kW system costing about $15,500 pays back in about 19.1 years, with $5,885 net over 25 years.

How many Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation customers have solar?

About 630 homes had net-metered solar at the end of 2025, roughly 0.3% of residential customers (EIA-861).

Legal name: Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation (EIA ID 16865). Data: EIA-861 2025 and monthly data through 2026, state policy research October 2026.