Owners of a solar system can generate SRECs from the energy produced by their solar panels and systems. One Illinois SREC equals 1,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of solar energy generated, or one megawatt (MWh). In other words, every time MWh produces a solar array, another SREC is there.
Owners sell their manufactured SRECs in Illinois on a 15-year contract to a market set up by the Illinois Power Agency (IPA). SRECs are sold separately from the actual electricity they produce, which means that owners can use electricity from their solar system to directly reduce their home or business electricity bill and sell SRECs generated from that energy to the consumer.
SRECs accumulate as solar energy is generated and are usually paid as a lump sum or over a period of 7 to 5 years. For small residential and commercial applications less than 25 kW (AC) SREC payment will occur at a single charge. Larger systems over 25.0 kW to 2,000 kW are paid annually for a period of 7 years.