Solar for Mid-Missouri Co-op Members: Three Rivers, Callaway and Central Missouri Electric

Missouri's net metering law in brief

Missouri's Net Metering and Easy Connection Act (RSMo 386.890) requires electric utilities, including investor-owned utilities, municipal utilities and rural electric cooperatives, to offer net metering for qualifying renewable systems of 100 kW or less. In general, the energy your system sends to the grid is netted against what you use in a billing period. If you export more than you use, the excess is credited at the utility's avoided cost, which is much lower than the retail rate. Credits are applied to future bills and expire after 12 months. Monthly customer or service charges still apply.

In practical terms, solar pays best when it offsets the power you would otherwise buy at the retail rate. Oversizing a system to sell power back rarely pays off in Missouri.

Co-op specifics

Many rural mid-Missouri homes are served by electric cooperatives rather than Ameren or a city utility. Three of them, Three Rivers Electric Cooperative, Callaway Electric Cooperative and Central Missouri Electric Cooperative (CMEC), each publish net metering information for members.

These co-ops credit excess solar at the avoided cost of their wholesale power. Their published materials reference Associated Electric Cooperative Inc. (AECI) avoided-cost figures. Central Missouri Electric says its rate is typically about 2 cents per kWh. Check with your co-op for the current number.

What this means for you. With exported energy worth about 2 cents per kWh, solar pays off mainly by offsetting the power you would otherwise buy. Smaller, right-sized systems, often paired with a battery that stores daytime production for evening use, tend to make more sense than large systems designed to export.

Process. Each co-op requires an interconnection application and agreement before you connect. Get your co-op's packet early, because some require approval before installation begins.

How Solar Sam can help your electric cooperative customers

Solar Sam is a Columbia, Missouri solar and electrical contractor serving mid-Missouri. We are not affiliated with your electric cooperative. The utility approves the interconnection and sets the meter, and we handle the work on your side of the meter:

• Sizing a new system based on your actual usage history, so you aren't overbuilding past what the utility will credit.
• Interconnection paperwork. We prepare the application, the one-line diagram and the equipment specifications the utility and your local permit office require.
• Batteries and backup. Storage lets you use more of your own solar at night and keep key circuits running during an outage. A generator is another option for longer outages.
• Service on existing systems, including systems installed by companies that have since closed: inspections, repairs, monitoring reconnection and detach-and-reset for roof replacements.
• Electrical upgrades, such as panel replacements, that a solar or battery project sometimes requires.

Call (573) 819-9623 to talk through your bills and your roof. We'll tell you honestly whether solar makes sense for your home under your electric cooperative's current rules.

A note on tax credits

The federal residential clean energy credit (Section 25D) ended for systems placed in service after December 31, 2025, so homeowners shouldn't plan on it for a new purchase. Ask a tax professional about your own situation.

This article is general information, not legal or financial advice. Company and utility details change, so check the linked sources and your own documents. Last reviewed October 2026.