Illinois enacted the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act (CRGA) on January 8, 2026. Through 2026, ComEd filed the tariffs the act lays out: a scheduled dispatch program effective July 16, a net metering rider effective September 14, and a rebate rider effective October 19. Together they create the state’s first retail revenue stack for distribution-connected BESS, with no PJM interconnection or wholesale market participation agreement required.

The stack has four revenue streams. First, Illinois pays a one-time rebate of $250 per kWh of nameplate capacity. Second, hourly net metering pays every export at the full retail supply price. Third, the Scheduled Dispatch Virtual Power Plant (SDVPP) pays $10 per kW-season for summer weekday evening discharge. Fourth, exporting through PJM’s and ComEd’s coincident peaks turns the battery’s Peak Load Contribution (PLC) negative. Capacity and transmission charges then become credits.

A 5 MW, 4-hour battery will receive a rebate of $5 million. Had the tariffs been in force in 2025, the battery would have earned up to $300,000 a year through net metering and scheduled dispatch. The capacity and transmission credits start later, in the 2028/29 delivery year. At that year’s capacity price, it could earn up to another $685,000 a year by exporting through 90% of the coincident-peak hours.

Key takeaways

• Under CRGA, Illinois pays a rebate of $250 per kWh of nameplate capacity for standalone distributed BESS interconnected after June 1, 2026. Applications open January 1, 2027, and ComEd pays within 60 days of a complete application once the battery is operating.
• Net metering nets charging and discharging hourly at the full retail supply rate and bills or pays out the result monthly. Backtested on 2025 ComEd day-ahead prices, a 5 MW system can earn $250,000 a year on the energy line.
• The SDVPP pays $10 per kW-season for injections between 4pm and 6pm on summer weekdays. That is $50,000 per year at 5 MW, stacking on top of net metering credits for the same MWh.
• Exporting through PJM’s and ComEd’s coincident peaks turns the capacity and transmission charges into credits. From the 2028/29 delivery year, a 5 MW battery catching 90% of the peaks could earn up to $685,000 a year.

CRGA sets a $250/kWh rebate that covers most of a battery’s CapEx

The DG Rebate Rider, filed under CRGA, makes standalone BESS eligible for a distributed generation rebate. Eligibility requires interconnection to ComEd’s distribution system after June 1, 2026, charging solely from the grid, and a nameplate rating of 5 MW or less. The rebate pays $250 per kWh to batteries of 100 kW or more and $300 per kWh to batteries under 100 kW.

The rebate is capped at five hours of duration and 25 MWh, so the most any single battery can receive is $6.25 million. A 5 MW, 4-hour battery (20 MWh) collects $5 million.