As if the cumbersome paperwork process wasn’t difficult enough, several people at an Island Green Building Association meeting Thursday said a meter problem means the V.I. Water and Power Authority is charging them for the solar power they produce under the net metering program rather than reducing their electric bill.
“We got an $8,000 bill,” said Miles Stair, chairman of the Gifft Hill School board of directors, at the meeting held at the Marketplace shopping center.
Stair said this went on for nearly a year until the school discovered that WAPA hadn’t installed the correct meter when the school switched to net metering.
Bill Osborne, who installs solar systems, said that people perceive that WAPA is stealing their money.
The problem stems from the fact that WAPA has three types of meters in use. Melton Smith, who is WAPA’s manager of design and construction on St. Croix, said the old analog meters are being replaced by digital meters.
While St. John electrical contractor Chris Clark said the digital meters can be programmed to correctly record what the net metering customer is producing, he said WAPA hasn’t done this and is why residents are being charged for the power they produce instead of seeing a reduction in their bill.
However, in some cases WAPA installed meters that are specific to the net metering program and those customers appear not to be having problems.
The digital ones that are not programmed correctly and were not replaced by the ones specific to the net metering program appear to be the ones causing the problem.
This problem came after net metering customers spent months of time and effort doing the paperwork. Richard Burks of Angel Electric said it takes anywhere from four to 12 weeks to get the appropriate permit from the Planning and Natural Resources Department. He said that with that permit in hand, installation can proceed.
“Then you apply for the final permit from WAPA, but that takes four weeks to four months,” he said.
Planning and WAPA both required submission of the same paperwork with WAPA asking for additional forms to be filled out, Burks said. He questioned why both agencies wanted customers to submit the same form.
Bill Willigerod, who also was charged for power he produced under the net metering program, said he learned after he discovered he had the wrong meter that there was a new application form that had to be filled out although had already gone through the permit process.
“They moved the goal posts,” he said.
A shortage of electrical inspectors at Planning also slows down the works, permits director Phillip Smith said.
“I have one qualified inspector for St. Thomas and St. John,” he said.
Burks said the electrical inspectors come to St. John only one day a week “at best.”
Phillip Smith suggested dissatisfied customers complain to their senators so they’ll appropriate money to pay for more inspectors.
While people at the meeting were angry about the permit process and the charges for power they produced, they were ready to move forward toward a solution.
Clark suggested that an interagency committee be formed with representatives from WAPA, DPNR, contractors and solar installers to draw up new forms that meet the needs of all agencies.
Allyson Gregory, WAPA’s manager of system planning, said she was shocked to hear of the problems experienced by St. John net metering customers. She said WAPA wants net metering to work.
“We’ve got to get this resolved ASAP. I don’t like injustice,” she said to applause from those at the meeting.
