Massachusetts

Eligibility Period

Massachusetts SRECs are defined by eligibility for the DOER Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auction (SCCA). Solar facilities may produce SCCA-eligible SRECs for no more than 40 calendar quarters (10 years) of generation. Applications submitted after specific program deadlines may either truncate the eligibility period or delay the start of eligibility until after the date of interconnection. After a facility’s SREC eligibility period ends, the facility produces RECs eligible for the Massachusetts Class I market.

Meter Readings

Facilities must report generation from revenue grade meters to the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) Production Tracking System (PTS). Facilities with a nameplate capacity greater than 10 kW must report automatically using a MassCEC-approved revenue grade meter online monitoring system, also known as a Data Acquisition System (DAS).

Solar Requirement

Instead of a predetermined increase in the number of SRECs required year over year (as is used in other SREC markets), the DOER utilizes a formula that takes into consideration how much capacity was installed in previous years and the results of the annual DOER-administered Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auction (SCCA) to determine the next year’s SREC compliance obligations.

The formula for determining the SREC requirement under both the SREC-I and SREC-II programs is as follows:

• Total Compliance Obligation = Total Compliance Obligation (Current Year) + [Total Projected SRECs Generated (Current Year) - Actual SRECs Generated (Previous Year)] x 1.3 + Banked Volume (Previous Year) + Auction Volume (Previous Year)

"Auction Volume" refers to the number of SRECs deposited in each program's Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auction Account. Also, when the program reaches its MW capacity limit (i.e., the “Sunset Period”), the components of the formula are adjusted as outlined in the regulation.

Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auction

The Massachusetts SREC programs are built around a price support mechanism called the Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auction (SCCA). In oversupplied years (when more SRECs are available than required), buyers are incentivized to purchase SRECs through the SCCA if they believe that the SCCA price is at or below the potential future price of the SRECs.

The SREC-I and SREC-II programs each have their own SCCA. The results of the SCCA for each of the programs are unrelated, but the rules governing each SCCA are similar. SRECs from the SREC-I program may only be deposited in an SREC-I SCCA, and SRECs from the SREC-II program may only be deposited in an SREC-II SCCA. The SCCA program rules do not require buyers to purchase SRECs through the SCCA, so there is no guarantee that SRECs deposited in the SCCA will be purchased. Buyers purchasing SRECs in the SCCA must pay predetermined purchase prices. Since the DOER takes a 5% administration fee for each sale, the value to a seller with SRECs in the SCCA is the predetermined SCCA price, less 5%.

SREC Issuance Schedule

MA SRECs are issued once per quarter with a three and a half month delay, based on the following schedule:

Power Production Period	Date SRECs Issued
Q1 (Jan to Mar)	July 15th
Q2 (Apr to Jun)	October 15th
Q3 (Jul to Sep)	January 15th
Q4 (Oct to Dec)	April 15th

Eligibility Start Date

A system’s eligibility start dates will be its date of interconnection, so long as the certification application is submitted prior to that quarter’s application deadline. Otherwise, eligibility will be based on the application date and its corresponding quarter. System owners should apply for certification around the date of interconnection to ensure they receive SREC eligibility for all generation produced following interconnection.

SACP

The Solar Alternative Compliance Payment (SACP) is the penalty price that electricity suppliers must pay per SREC if they fail to file the required number of SRECs by the end of each compliance period. The SACP price decreases over time in both the SREC-I and SREC-II programs.

SREC Useful Life

SRECs unsold by the end of each trading year (June 15th) must be deposited in the DOER Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auction (SCCA). If an SREC deposited in the SCCA is not purchased, then it is re-issued and must be sold within three years; however, re-issued SRECs may not be deposited into future Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auctions, effectively stripping these SRECs of SCCA eligibility. The risk of an unsuccessful SCCA sale and the time value of money are two reasons why sellers will sell SRECs below the SCCA price in oversupplied years.

SREC-II Market Sectors

The SREC-II program divides project eligibility into market sectors. With the exception of the Managed Growth category, there are no limits on how much capacity can qualify within each market sector. A project’s market sector eligibility determines how many SRECs it receives for each megawatt hour it produces. This is meant to allow for a diverse portfolio of projects to be developed in the Commonwealth. For example, a residential project or large carport will receive 10 SRECs for every 10 megawatt hours it produces, whereas a project in the Managed Growth category will only receive 7 SRECs for every 10 megawatt hours it produces.

The table below summarizes the original SREC-II factors. For the reduced SREC-II factors, see below.

For important information on market sectors and SREC-II, please visit the following MA DOER web pages:

• About the Solar Carve-Out II Program
• SREC-II FAQ Guideline
• For information about the SREC II Emergency Rulemaking, including the Reduced SREC Factor Guideline and the Extension Guideline, click here.