Electricity In Alaska

Approximately 12.73% of the electricity providers in Alaska offer net metering to their consumers. At the state level, Alaska has highly restricted regulations for consumers interested in purchasing solar panels.

The average energy loss for electricity providers in Alaska is 4.89%. This includes data from 41 companies, including Chugach Electric, Matanuska Electric Association, and Golden Valley Electric. For comparison, the US average energy loss is 2.72%. Alaska ranks 10th worst in the nation for grid efficiency based on energy loss.

When it comes to stimulating home installs of solar, tax and rebate incentives from the government are some of the easiest methods. Alaska offers a credit that is $1000 or less or there is no state tax. The state offers no rebates to consumers who are installing solar. Unfortunately, citizens in the state are only offered some optional tax exemptions for what they spend on private solar purchases. Consumers in the state do not have access to a sales tax exemption when purchasing solar.

Whether a consumer is able to seek out electricity plans with renewable fuel sources is at least somewhat determined by state level legislation. Many states require green fuel types to be a portion of the fuel used for electricity production by providers in the state. These requirements are known as Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS). The state of Alaska does not currently have any standards established that suppliers have to follow. Additionally, the state does not have any sort of low income solar programs that assist with the installation of solar panels at low income households.