Solar Export Payments NI 2026: Rates, Suppliers & How to Earn

Checked 27 October 2026: If you are waiting for a solar export payment, check your meter reading and payment schedule before assuming something has gone wrong. Power NI says most export customers are paid in late October each year, rather than quarterly.

This guide covers getting registered, checking what you are paid for and keeping the paperwork straight. The separate October export-rate article covers the rate change announced at the start of the month.

What you get paid for

Your panels first supply electricity your home is using at that moment. Surplus electricity can flow back to the grid. An export agreement sets out how a supplier pays for those exported units.

Your inverter’s generation total and your export meter reading measure different things. Electricity used by your home or put into a battery has not necessarily been exported. Keep the readings separate when checking a statement.

For the overall purchase decision, use our solar costs guide. An export payment is one part of that calculation, alongside avoided electricity purchases and the cost of the installation.

Why GB export advice does not transfer directly to NI

The government’s Smart Export Guarantee guidance applies to England, Scotland and Wales. It does not cover Northern Ireland.

An NI export contract has its own conditions. Do not assume a GB tariff, payment timetable or eligibility limit applies because a comparison page calls it a UK offer. Ask the supplier to confirm that it accepts your NI installation, including its size, certification and metering arrangements.

Which suppliers publish an NI export offer?

The table records what the linked supplier pages say, checked on 27 October 2026. It is not a ranking of every contract available in the market.

Supplier	What its own information confirms	What to check
Power NI	Export rate of 11.88p/kWh for 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2027. Its tariff year resets each October.	The contract for your generating station, reading requirements and payment schedule.
Click Energy	Buys exported electricity through a Power Purchase Agreement. It says you can keep a different electricity supplier for imports.	Whether your domestic system qualifies and the written rate, fees, contract period and notice terms. The page does not give a standard household rate.
Budget Energy	Its solar FAQ says it does not offer an export tariff and directs customers to Power NI.	Arrange an export contract separately; a solar installation offer is not an export tariff.

We have not verified a current NI household export offer from SSE Airtricity for this update. Its Republic of Ireland microgeneration information should not be treated as an NI contract. Ask for written terms that specifically cover your address before relying on an offer.

Power NI’s export price is approved annually by the Utility Regulator. Its solar export FAQ describes an annual fixed-price offer for export generators up to 50kW. Larger systems need the appropriate supplier agreement; the GB SEG’s capacity limit is not an NI eligibility rule.

Meter readings, rather than a deemed percentage

The Utility Regulator’s microgeneration settlement decision replaced the deemed approach with actual meter readings from 1 October 2022. The previous NI settlement assumption was 45%, not the 50% figure often quoted in GB Feed-in Tariff explanations.

For a new installation, get the export meter and account arrangements confirmed. Do not assume the supplier will pay on an estimated share of everything your panels generate.

A battery changes the amount you export. Check measured export when comparing your first statement with an installer’s forecast; a generation forecast alone cannot tell you what the export payment should be.

Get the registration and handover right

Power NI’s installer guidance gives three registration steps: activate a Renewable Account, set up the generating station and provide an opening export reading. Ask your installer what they will complete and what remains your responsibility.

Before the installation is handed over, have a record of:

• The generating station details and the certification documents the export supplier requires.
• The NIE Networks connection paperwork and any meter-change arrangements.
• The meter serial number, the correct export register and a photograph of the opening reading.
• Your export account or application reference, plus written confirmation of when the agreement starts.

These are practical handover checks, not a universal supplier application form. Confirm the actual document list with the supplier you choose.

Power NI’s meter guidance says the installer applies to NIE Networks for an import/export meter. It also says the panels should not be commissioned before that meter change. Published guidance on the installation sequence needs careful checking for the particular connection, as explained in our recently corrected meter guide.

Get the sequence confirmed by your installer and NIE Networks. There is no reason to confuse that import/export meter requirement with waiting for a future national smart-meter rollout. The grid-connection guide covers the separate network paperwork.

When should the money arrive?

Power NI’s payment guidance says most customers receive their export payment in late October. It flags reading verification and meter changes as possible causes of delay.

Keep the reading photograph and submission confirmation. If a payment is late, ask whether the reading was accepted and whether a meter or equipment change still needs to be recorded. Your invoice should make it possible to compare the relevant exported units with the rate for that period.

Power NI says renewable payments go into your bank account separately from your electricity supply bill. Check the bank payment and export statement rather than looking only for a credit on your import bill.

A different supplier’s schedule comes from its own contract. Avoid assuming every PPA pays monthly or quarterly, or that a new account pays from the date the panels were fitted.

Check the savings calculation against your own use

The useful comparison is between the import cost you avoid and the export income you give up. Use the unit rate that applies when you would otherwise buy that electricity. A night-rate household needs a different calculation from a home on a single rate.

For an illustration, suppose you have 1,000kWh of surplus solar electricity and could later use it instead of buying electricity at 30p/kWh. Exporting it at 11.88p/kWh earns £118.80. If a battery delivers 900kWh back to the home after an assumed 10% loss, the avoided purchase is £270. The difference is £151.20 before the battery’s purchase cost, degradation and any other charges.

Those are stated assumptions, not a household forecast or a battery recommendation. Change the import rate, usable energy and losses to match the quote. A battery does not automatically pay for itself because its stored electricity replaces some grid purchases.

Using suitable appliances during solar generation can also reduce imports without buying storage. Run them when you can supervise them and follow their instructions. There is no benefit in creating unnecessary consumption just to keep the export reading down.

Check the contract before changing it

Before switching export supplier, check the end date, notice period and any fees in the existing agreement. Ask the new supplier to confirm acceptance before you cancel anything. Do not assume an import-supplier switch also transfers your export account.

Keep ROC income separate from export income. Power NI explains that the ROC scheme closed to new installations in March 2017. Older accredited systems may still qualify, and changes such as adding a battery can affect their accreditation. If that applies to your system, ask the supplier and installer about the reporting requirements before making changes.

For your next quote or annual review, ask for one clear calculation: estimated generation, expected self-consumption, exported units and the export rate used. That makes it easier to spot an old rate or an optimistic export assumption before you commit.