Western Cooperative Electric Association and solar
Western Cooperative Electric Association is an electric cooperative serving about 5,800 homes in Kansas. Here's what its rates and export rules mean for solar: for a typical customer, solar is a close call.
- Average price (2026 est.)
- 15.2¢1% above Kansas average
- Typical bill
- $133873 kWh a month
- Exports credited
- ~20%Reduced export credit
- Typical payback
- 15.1 yrs5.7 kW, cash
Export rules for Western Cooperative Electric Association customers
Reduced export credit (Kansas rule).
Kansas requires Evergy and Liberty (Empire) to offer net metering. Solar you use offsets retail, and monthly excess offsets usage, but net excess at the end of a billing period is credited at the utility's average cost of energy (only a few cents/kWh) rather than retail. Co-ops and city utilities aren't required to offer it.
Solar for a typical Western Cooperative Electric Association home
| System | 5.7 kW (80% of 873 kWh/month) |
|---|---|
| Cost | $18,035 |
| First-year savings | $1,261 |
| Payback | 15.1 years |
| 25-year net | $13,318 |
Uses the utility's average price.
Solar adoption
- Homes with solar (2025)
- 22
- Share of customers
- 0.4%
- Residential solar capacity
- 0 MW
- Residential customers
- 5,800
EIA-861, 2025.
Questions about Western Cooperative Electric Association and solar
Does Western Cooperative Electric Association have net metering?
Western Cooperative Electric Association follows Kansas's rules: Kansas requires Evergy and Liberty (Empire) to offer net metering. Solar you use offsets retail, and monthly excess offsets usage, but net excess at the end of a billing period is credited at the utility's average cost of energy (only a few cents/kWh) rather than retail. Co-ops and city utilities aren't required to offer it.
How much does electricity cost with Western Cooperative Electric Association?
Residential customers paid an average of 14.6¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA), about 15.2¢ adjusted to 2026. The typical home uses 873 kWh a month, a bill of about $133.
Is solar worth it with Western Cooperative Electric Association?
For a typical customer, solar is a close call: a 5.7 kW system costing about $18,035 pays back in about 15.1 years, with $13,318 net over 25 years.
How many Western Cooperative Electric Association customers have solar?
About 22 homes had net-metered solar at the end of 2025, roughly 0.4% of residential customers (EIA-861).
Legal name: Western Coop Electric Assn Inc (EIA ID 20476). Data: EIA-861 2025 and monthly data through 2026, state policy research October 2026.