The ability to net meter your power for sale back to the grid (Front of the Meter) is appealing, but it’s also nice to offset your own power usage (Behind the Meter). This 7.5KW project we built in Guelph, Ontario back in 2020 is doing both.
This is a fantastic option for rental properties to provide a return on investment for the property while not in use, but also provides energy resilience for renters in the event that the grid power goes down.
Just last night, Dec. 31, 2023 the power went out at my parents house on Morrison Lake in Gravenhurst, Ontario. We were sitting as a family out by the campfire when all of the lights flickered and quickly went dark. After 10 seconds our battery backup system engaged and the lights, and music miraculously came back on. Lots of cheering and high fives were happening when we realized that our neghbouring rental property was still pitch black while the renting family was sitting out at their fire. Luckily the grid power came back on a few hours later to power the heating system otherwise it would have been a really cold night for them.
Point of the story, behind the meter distributed energy generation is great as a backup system to make sure you’re never left in the dark, but it is nice to recieve the monetary benefits of selling that power back to the grid.