Typical customer: Close call

Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative and solar

Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative is an electric cooperative serving about 44,971 homes in Texas. Here's what its rates and export rules mean for solar: for a typical customer, solar is a close call.

Average price (2026 est.)
13.2¢17% below Texas average
Typical bill
$1591,208 kWh a month
Exports credited
~46%No statewide net metering
Typical payback
16.3 yrs4.8 kW, cash

Export rules for Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative customers

No statewide net metering (Texas rule).

Texas has no statewide net metering. In the deregulated ERCOT market you pick a retail electricity provider, and a few offer 'solar buyback' plans (typically 3-9 c/kWh, some match retail). Municipal utilities and co-ops set their own rules, e.g., Austin Energy's Value of Solar credit.

Texas net metering details

Solar for a typical Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative home

System4.8 kW (50% of 1,208 kWh/month)
Cost$13,580
First-year savings$826
Payback16.3 years
25-year net$9,628

Uses the utility's average price.

Solar adoption

Homes with solar (2025)
409
Share of customers
0.9%
Residential solar capacity
4 MW
Residential customers
44,971

EIA-861, 2025.

Questions about Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative and solar

Does Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative have net metering?

Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative follows Texas's rules: Texas has no statewide net metering. In the deregulated ERCOT market you pick a retail electricity provider, and a few offer 'solar buyback' plans (typically 3-9 c/kWh, some match retail). Municipal utilities and co-ops set their own rules, e.g., Austin Energy's Value of Solar credit.

How much does electricity cost with Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative?

Residential customers paid an average of 12.7¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA), about 13.2¢ adjusted to 2026. The typical home uses 1,208 kWh a month, a bill of about $159.

Is solar worth it with Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative?

For a typical customer, solar is a close call: a 4.8 kW system costing about $13,580 pays back in about 16.3 years, with $9,628 net over 25 years.

How many Upshur Rural Electric Cooperative customers have solar?

About 409 homes had net-metered solar at the end of 2025, roughly 0.9% of residential customers (EIA-861).

Legal name: Upshur Rural Elec Coop Corp (EIA ID 19579). Data: EIA-861 2025 and monthly data through 2026, state policy research October 2026.