Matthew Candler, the electricity reform team co-chair for Together New Orleans, watches an opening video during an announcement of the “Community Lighthouse Project,” which plans to install solar panels on area locations that will serve as community emergency response hubs, at New Wine Christian Fellowship in LaPlace, La. Tuesday, May 24, 2022. (Photo by Max Becherer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Mayor Helena Moreno, left, addresses the City Council at New Orleans City Hall as she attends her first council meeting as mayor just an hour after she took the oath of office at the Saenger Theatre on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (Photo by Chris Granger, The Times-Picayune)
Matthew Candler, the electricity reform team co-chair for Together New Orleans, watches an opening video during an announcement of the “Community Lighthouse Project,” which plans to install solar panels on area locations that will serve as community emergency response hubs, at New Wine Christian Fellowship in LaPlace, La. Tuesday, May 24, 2022. (Photo by Max Becherer, NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Nearly everyone likes the idea of solar. Homeowners who have seen big savings running all or some of their households with solar panels like it. Businesses doing away with traditionally unpredictable utility costs like lower, more predictable solar costs.
Even utility companies like Entergy New Orleans have taken a liking to solar as an energy source as the electric-focused company sees the future. As the city’s big utility, Entergy New Orleans has invested in the New Orleans Solar Station, a 100-acre solar farm at NASA’s Michoud plant in New Orleans East, a ReNewable Orleans Rooftop Solar Program encouraging rooftop solar use in part by providing monthly bill credits and exploring community solar gardens and other solar options.
Sounds good, right?
There are some reasons for concern. The last New Orleans City Council voted in favor of pursuing merging customers’ electric and solar bills to create a single, consolidated bill. It seems they planned to make this reality by the end of 2025. City Council members have been working with City Council staff, community solar advocates and developers to fine-tune how Entergy New Orleans could take bills from solar companies and developers and make it easier on solar customers by providing one bill.
Who wouldn’t prefer a single bill each month to cover a mortgage or rent, electric and gas for the apartment or home, sewage and water, gas for each vehicle and all planned, precooked and mailed meals that take only minutes to warm?
That one-bill-does-it-all approach won’t be happening anytime soon in New Orleans or any other part of Louisiana. It’s too complicated, and as simple as it sounds it’d likely lead to monthly bill increases that customers might hardly notice at first. A penny here. A nickel there. Oh, it’s only 25 cents.
There are more than 40 communities with community solar programs, and only eight of them have or are moving to combine solar bills into a single, consolidated bill.
I’m all for consolidated billing. I like the all-bills-here approach, but with limits.
Mayor Helena Moreno, left, addresses the City Council at New Orleans City Hall as she attends her first council meeting as mayor just an hour after she took the oath of office at the Saenger Theatre on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (Photo by Chris Granger, The Times-Picayune)
As proposed, City Council is being asked to force Entergy New Orleans to combine regular, monthly electric bills with regular, monthly solar bills, consolidating the two bills into one monthly bill to make it easier on solar customers who likely would appreciate having a single bill. That wouldn’t be one solar company’s bill consolidated with an electric bill. It would mean ENO has to work with 15 community solar projects developed by several different solar groups, including the Florida-based SunConnect and six other projects being developed by groups that include Carpe Diem Developers, Stay Ready Solar, Algiers Solar and Together New Orleans. The latter is one of the biggest consolidated billing advocates and a group working with Sisters of the Holy Family to implement a community solar program.
I respect the work of TNO and the Holy Family sisters. I believe that, in their hearts, they see community solar and consolidated billing as a way to benefit low-income people who use solar power. I don’t think that TNO, the sisters or City Council intend to hurt 95% of ENO customers since the proposed consolidated billing program could increase administrative costs for Entergy New Orleans.
ENO has argued Entergy customers would likely see bill increases if City Council makes them handle back-office, administrative billing processing for multiple companies. That could cost Entergy New Orleans as much as $200 million over 20 years. Who do you think would pay that? That would be 100% of Entergy customers, including the 95% who won’t use solar energy.
I’m sure Together New Orleans and the 5% who would benefit like that. I don’t.
Email Will Sutton at wsutton@theadvocate.com.
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