Posts Tagged ‘Solar Renewable Energy Certificates’

Congress Passes Extension of Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for Solar

Posted December 18th, 2015 by SRECTrade.

Earlier today, Congress passed the FY 2016 Omnibus Appropriations bill, which includes tax extenders and $1.1 trillion in government funding. The spending package includes a pivotal extension of the federal investment tax credit (ITC) for solar energy. The bill is the result of a bicameral and bipartisan compromise, by which Congressional Democrats pursued the extension of this federal subsidy as partial compensation for lifting the ban on US crude oil exports. At first, Democrats believed that the bill would be a loss for the environment, but Democratic leaders urged their party members to recognize the net benefits of extending support for renewable energy development.

“May the force be with you,” quipped Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), encouraging her fellow Senators to vote in favor of the package just hours after the House passed the bill. The bill passed both chambers of Congress by impressive majorities. The House approved by a 316 to 113 vote, and the Senate approved by a 65 to 33 vote.

While existing law provided the 30% solar ITC through the end of 2016, the extension guarantees 30% through 2019, declining to 26% in 2020 and 22% in 2021. After 2021, the 10% credit for Section 48 (commercial) projects will remain in place, per existing law. However, the bill includes “commence-construction” provisions that allow projects to qualify if they come on-line by the end of 2023. These extensions will help states to meet their Renewable Portfolio Standard and other renewable energy goals by helping project owners offset the cost of investing in renewable energy. The federal ITC, coupled with additional incentives, such as Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs), encourages investment in renewable technologies across the country.

The ITC extension will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the solar industry. Experts project that the extension will increase solar installations by 54 percent (compared to a non-extension scenario) and create a 20 GW annual solar market through 2020. The extension is expected to impact utility-scale solar the most, where installations could increase by as much as 73% through 2020. Comparatively, residential installations are expected to experience a 35% growth, and commercial installations are expected to grow by 51%. This anticipated development will spur economic growth and an anticipated incremental investment of $40 billion in the solar industry.

After proposing an extension of the ITC in his 2016 budget earlier this year, the passage of this bill reinforces President Obama’s inaugural commitment to addressing climate change and protecting the planet for future generations. The bill also follows the historic adoption of the Paris Climate Agreement, which was made at COP21 in Paris earlier this month. Although the Agreement still needs to be adopted by the U.S. Government, the President is resolute that the Agreement will survive Republican opposition and become law. In a statement following COP21, President Obama said that “this moment can be a turning point for the world[,]” and this bill is certainly a step in the right direction for America’s commitment to the new international goal.

Tags: renewable portfolio standard, RPS, Solar, Solar Carve-Out, Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, SREC
Posted in Grants and Rebates, Installers, Solar Financing, SREC Markets, State RPS, Washington, DC | Comments Off on Congress Passes Extension of Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for Solar

Delaware PSC Approves SREC Procurement Pilot Program

Posted November 15th, 2011 by SRECTrade.

The Delaware Public Service Commission approved the SREC Procurement Pilot Program on November 8^th, 2011. This program will allow qualified solar energy system owners to sell their SRECs at a fixed price for the next 20 years.

The program will only be open to certain DE solar owners, for example, eligible facility owners must have received approval of their “Accepted Completed Solar System Interconnection Application” on or after December 1^st 2010. Another requirement stipulates that the facility must not have received supplemental funding from a public source other than grants associated with the Delaware Green Energy Program “GEP”.

The number of SRECs to be procured is tiered according to the system size from which they are obtained. They will also be priced accordingly. Based on the requirements for June 2011 through May 2012, the numbers and price are

Tier	Size (kW)	Number of SRECs	Percentage of Total SRECs	Price, 1^st 10 years	Price, next 10 years
1	<50	2972	13.4%	$260 base, $235 alt⁺	$50
2a	50 – 250	2,000	9.1%	$240 base, $175 alt⁺	$50
2b	250 – 500	2,000	9.1%	Lowest Bid Price*	$50
3	500 – 2,000	4,500	20.4%	Lowest Bid Price*	$50
4	>2,000	10,600	48%	Lowest Bid Price*	$50

⁺Alternative pricing for projects that received a GEP grant before December 10 2010.
* Prices for tiers 2b, 3 and 4 will be decided by competitive bidding amongst the applicants.

In the event of oversubscription for facilities in Tier 1 and 2A, systems will be eliminated via lottery, starting with systems enrolled in the equipment or workforce bonus program.

Payments will be made quarterly for Tier 1 and monthly for Tiers 2 and 3. The energy production must be measured by at least a standard, utility grade meter and online monitoring for Tier 1 systems, and a revenue grade meter with online monitoring for Tiers 2 and 3.

Facilities are obliged to deliver the number of SRECs as estimated for their system size when they apply. The Sustainable Energy Utility is obliged to purchase up to 110% of the estimated SRECs, but may choose not to purchase any additional surplus SRECs.

This program will likely commence this winter or spring, and SRECTrade will be supporting this program for all of our installers and their customers. Look out for a future email regarding the SREC Pilot Program.

Tags: DE Pilot Program, DE PSC, DE SRECs, Delaware, Delaware PSC, Procurement Program, Renewable Energy Certificates, renewable portfolio standard, selling SRECs, Solar, Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, SREC, SREC Prices, SREC Procurement, SREC Procurement Pilot Program, SREC Programs
Posted in Delaware, SREC Markets, SREC Pricing | 2 Comments »

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – August 2011

Posted August 26th, 2011 by SRECTrade.

SRECTrade SREC Markets Report: August 2011

The following post outlines the megawatts of solar capacity certified and/or registered to create SRECs in the SREC markets SRECTrade currently serves.

For a PDF copy of this table click here.

Renewable Generators in GATS 8_25_11_v4

PJM Eligible Systems

As of the end of August, there were 18,112 solar PV (17,791) and solar thermal (321) systems registered and eligible to create SRECs in the PJM Generation Attribute Tracking System (GATS) registry. Of these eligible systems, 77 (0.43%) have a nameplate capacity of 1 megawatt or greater, of which only 6 systems are greater than 5 MW. The largest system, currently located in New Jersey, is 18.3 MW, and the second largest, located in Ohio is 12 MW. The third largest system, at 11.2 MW, is located in Delaware.

Beginning of energy year for DE, NJ, and PA

June 1, 2011 marked the beginning of the new energy year for DE, NJ, and PA. All requirements for these markets increase given their RPS solar carve out schedules. SRECs for the month of July, the second creation period for the new reporting year, will be minted at the end of August.

Delaware: The reporting year 2011-2012 requirement for DE equates to approximately 21 MW being online for the entire year or approximately 25,600 SRECs created. As of August 25, 2011, 20.5 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create DE SRECs in PJM GATS. 11.2 MW of the 20.5 MW currently eligible is from the Dover Sun Park project developed by LS Power. In the 2011-12 compliance year, Delmarva Power has contracted to purchase 9,846 SRECs from the project, of which 7,000 are being held by the Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU) until 2015-16*.

New Jersey: The reporting year 2012 requirement for NJ equates to approximately 368 MW being online for the entire year with a fixed SREC requirement of 442,000 MWhs. As of August 25, 2011, 379 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create NJ SRECs in PJM GATS. While this figure represents all projects registered in GATS, there are recently installed projects awaiting issuance of a New Jersey state certification number. This delay results in a portion of installed projects not yet represented in the 379 MW figure. On July 26, 2011 the NJ Office of Clean Energy (NJ OCE) reported that as of June 30, 2011 more than 380 MW (10,086 projects) of solar had been installed in NJ. The news release noted that 40 MW were installed in the month of June. The installation data for July 2011 has not yet been released by the NJ OCE. For more details on the the current NJ market conditions see this post.

Pennsylvania: The reporting year 2012 requirement for PA equates to approximately 44 MW being online for the entire year or approximately 53,000 SRECs created. As of August 25, 2011, 124.5 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create PA SRECs in PJM GATS.

Massachusetts DOER Qualified Projects

As of August 15, 2011, there were 861 MA DOER qualified solar projects; 829 operational and 32 not operational. Of these qualified systems, 11 (1.3%) have a nameplate capacity of 1 megawatt or greater, of which only 3 are between 1.5 and 2 MW. Three of the projects greater than 1 MW are currently operational.

Capacity Summary By State

The tables above demonstrate the capacity breakout by state. Note, that for all PJM GATS registered projects, each state includes all projects certified to sell into that state. State RPS programs that allow for systems sited in other states to participate have been broken up by systems sited in state and out of state. Additional detail has been provided to demonstrate the total capacity of systems only certified for one specific state market versus being certified for multiple state markets. For example, PA includes projects only certified to sell into the PA SREC market, broken out by in state and out of state systems, as well as projects that are also certified to sell into PA and Other State markets broken out by in state and out of state systems (i.e. OH, DC, MD, DE, NJ). PA Out of State includes systems sited in states with their own state SREC market (i.e. DE) as well as systems sited in states that have no SREC market (i.e. VA). Also, it is important to note that the Current Capacity represents the total megawatts eligible to produce and sell SRECs as of the noted date, while the Estimated Required Capacity – Current and Next Reporting Year represents the estimated number of MW that need to be online on average throughout the reporting period to meet the RPS requirement within each state. For example, New Jersey needs approximately 368 MW online for the entire 2012 reporting year to meet the RPS requirement. Additionally, the data presented above does not include projects that are in the pipeline or currently going through the registration process in each state program. This data represents specifically the projects that have been approved for the corresponding state SREC markets as of the dates noted.

*Source: State of Delaware Pilot Program For the Procurement of Solar Renewable Energy Credits: Recommendations of the Renewable Energy Taskforce

Tags: DC SRECs, DE SRECs, East Coast Solar Capacity, GATS, MA DOER, MA SRECs, MD SRECs, NEPOOL GIS, NJ SRECs, OH SRECs, PA SRECs, RECs, Renewable Energy Certificates, renewable portfolio standard, Solar Capacity, Solar Carve-Out, Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, Solar Renewable Energy Credits, SREC Aggregator, SREC States, SRECs
Posted in Capacity Summary, SREC Markets | Comments Off on Solar Capacity in the SREC States – August 2011

PA Market Update

Posted July 28th, 2011 by SRECTrade.

The Pennsylvania 2011 SREC compliance year has seen a substantial amount of solar development. Solar capacity registered within the state has lead to a significant oversupply resulting in an 85% decline in spot market trading throughout the course of the 2011 reporting year.

Since September of 2010, PA SRECs have dropped from $300/SREC to $50/SREC. As of July 25, 2011, the 115.7 MW of registered generation has far outpaced the 2011 RPS requirements of 18 MW. This has been the result of additional PA solar incentives, on top of the SREC program, and a large influx of out-of-state systems; of the 115.7 MW registered in PA, 24.7 MW are located out-of-state.

Fortunately, Representative Chris Ross has proposed an amendment to the PA Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard. The amendment would modify the eligibility criteria so that only in-state systems could register in Pennsylvania after January 1, 2012. Furthermore, the solar carve-out requirements for energy years 2013, 2014, and 2015 would increase from approximately 71 MW, 118 MW and 205 MW to 207 MW, 238 MW, and 290 MW, respectively. These proposed changes should strengthen the market by increasing solar requirements and closing off out of state supply. However, the oversupply of SRECs in 2011 and 2012 will carry over into the 2013 solar year and may keep prices low. Given the legislature is out of session until October, further development will not occur until late 2011.

If new legislation does get passed, the market may shift from an oversupplied market to an undersupplied market. This shift could result in an increase in future SREC pricing. One of the determining factors for price is the Alternative Compliance Payment (ACP). In some states, NJ for example, the ACP is set by law and is known for future years. Buyers know exactly what the alternative payment will be, and thus have a basis for the maximum value of an SREC. In PA however, the future ACP is not known. The ACP is calculated based on the average price paid for an SREC during the current year with weighting to include solar rebates. For Chris Ross’s amendment to be truly successful, it will not only have to address the oversupply, but the ACP price as well.

To get involved with advocating for solar legislation, the Pennsylvania Division of the Mid-Atlantic Energy Industries Association (PASEIA) is a group of solar professionals who advocate for the interests of solar energy and a strong local PA industry. Their blog has some good information on the status of the bill.

PA SREC Market – Proposed Legislation and Current Capacity

Note: Capacity (MW) forecast based on PA RPS requirements and SRECTrade estimates. Capacity (MW) figures presented for May 2010, May 2011, and July 2011 based on registered systems in GATS as of date listed. The current requirements (i.e. green line) as of July 2011 demonstrates the capacity (MW) required for the 2012 reporting year; approximately 44 MW. Figures for 2013-2015 represent the estimated amount of installed capacity (MW) needed on average throughout the compliance year.

Tags: House Bill 1580, PA SREC, PA SRECs, SACP, selling SRECs, Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, SREC, SREC Programs, SREC States, SRECs
Posted in Pennsylvania, SREC Markets, SREC Pricing, State RPS | 3 Comments »

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – July 2011

Posted July 26th, 2011 by SRECTrade.

SRECTrade SREC Markets Report: July 2011

The following post outlines the megawatts of solar capacity certified and/or registered to create SRECs in the SREC markets SRECTrade currently serves.

For a PDF copy of this table click here.

Capacity_July11

PJM Eligible Systems

As of the end of July, there were 17,106 solar PV (16,792) and solar thermal (314) systems registered and eligible to create SRECs in the PJM Generation Attribute Tracking System (GATS) registry. Of these eligible systems, 70 (0.40%) have a nameplate capacity of 1 megawatt or greater, of which only 4 systems are greater than 5 MW. The largest system, currently located in New Jersey, is 18.3 MW, and the second largest, located in Ohio is 12 MW. The third largest system, at 10 MW, is located in IL and eligible for the MD, PA, and DC SREC markets. The fourth largest, at 6.2 MW, is located in New Jersey.

New Energy Year To Begin for DE, NJ, and PA

June 1, 2011 marks the beginning of the new energy year for DE, NJ, and PA. All requirements for these markets increase given their RPS solar carve out schedules. SRECs for the month of June, the first creation period for the new reporting year, will be minted at the end of July.

Delaware: The reporting year 2011-2012 requirement for DE equates to approximately 21 MW being online for the entire year or approximately 25,600 SRECs created. As of July 25, 2011, 9.1 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create DE SRECs in PJM GATS.

New Jersey: The reporting year 2012 requirement for NJ equates to approximately 368 MW being online for the entire year with a fixed SREC requirement of 442,000 MWhs. As of July 25, 2011, 347.5 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create NJ SRECs in PJM GATS. While this figure represents all projects registered in GATS, there are recently installed projects awaiting issuance of a New Jersey state certification number. This delay results in a portion of installed projects not yet represented in the 347.5 MW figure. On July 26, 2011 the NJ Office of Clean Energy (NJ OCE) reported that as of June 30, 2011 more than 380 MW (10,086 projects) of solar had been installed in NJ. The news release noted that 40 MW were installed in the month of June.

Pennsylvania: The reporting year 2012 requirement for PA equates to approximately 44 MW being online for the entire year or approximately 53,000 SRECs created. As of July 25, 2011, 115.7 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create PA SRECs in PJM GATS.

Massachusetts DOER Qualified Projects

As of July 11, 2011, there were 682 MA DOER qualified solar projects; 649 operational and 33 not operational. Of these qualified systems, 11 (1.6%) have a nameplate capacity of 1 megawatt or greater, of which only 3 are between 1.5 and 2 MW. Three of the projects greater than 1 MW are currently operational.

Capacity Summary By State

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – June 2011

Posted July 5th, 2011 by SRECTrade.

SRECTrade SREC Markets Report: June 2011

The following post outlines the megawatts of solar capacity certified and/or registered to create SRECs in the SREC markets SRECTrade currently serves.

For a PDF copy of this table click here.

Capacity_June2011_1

PJM Eligible Systems

As of the end of June, there were 16,381 solar PV (16,069) and solar thermal (312) systems registered and eligible to create SRECs in the PJM Generation Attribute Tracking System (GATS) registry. Of these eligible systems, 65 (0.40%) have a nameplate capacity of 1 megawatt or greater, of which only 4 systems are greater than 5 MW. The largest system, currently located in New Jersey, is 18.3 MW, and the second largest, located in Ohio is 12 MW. The third largest system, at 10 MW, is located in IL and eligible for the MD, PA, and DC SREC markets. The fourth largest, at 6.2 MW, is located in New Jersey.

New Energy Year To Begin for DE, NJ, and PA

Delaware: The reporting year 2011-2012 requirement for DE equates to approximately 21 MW being online for the entire year or approximately 25,600 SRECs created. As of June 30, 2011, 9.1 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create DE SRECs in PJM GATS.

New Jersey: The reporting year 2012 requirement for NJ equates to approximately 368 MW being online for the entire year with a fixed SREC requirement of 442,000 MWhs. As of June 30, 2011, 332 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create NJ SRECs in PJM GATS. As of April 30, 2011, the NJ Office of Clean Energy (NJOCE) reported that 330.5 MW (9,181 projects) of solar had been installed in the state. The NJOCE data shows that from November 2010 – April 2011, the average installed capacity per month was 18 MW. Forecasts prepared by the NJOCE, show the monthly rate of installation through September 2011 ranging between 17 – 30 MW per month depending on different scenarios.

Pennsylvania: The reporting year 2012 requirement for PA equates to approximately 44 MW being online for the entire year or approximately 53,000 SRECs created. As of June 30, 2011, 104.8 MW of solar capacity was registered and eligible to create PA SRECs in PJM GATS.

Massachusetts DOER Qualified Projects

As of May 6, 2011, there were 524 MA DOER qualified solar projects; 467 operational and 57 not operational. Of these qualified systems, 11 (2.1%) have a nameplate capacity of 1 megawatt or greater, of which only 3 are between 1.5 and 2 MW. Three of the projects greater than 1 MW are currently operational.

Capacity Summary By State

The tables above demonstrate the capacity breakout by state. Note, that for all PJM GATS registered projects, each state includes all projects certified to sell into that state. State RPS programs that allow for systems sited in other states to participate have been broken up by systems sited in state and out of state. Additional detail has been provided to demonstrate the total capacity of systems only certified for one specific state market versus being certified for multiple state markets. For example, PA includes projects only certified to sell into the PA SREC market, broken out by in state and out of state systems, as well as projects that are also certified to sell into PA and Other State markets broken out by in state and out of state systems (i.e. OH, DC, MD, DE, NJ). PA Out of State includes systems sited in states with their own state SREC market (i.e. DE) as well as systems sited in states that have no SREC market (i.e. VA). Also, it is important to note that the Current Capacity represents the total megawatts eligible to produce and sell SRECs as of the noted date, while the Estimated Required Capacity – Current and Next Reporting Year represents the estimated number of MW that need to be online on average throughout the reporting period to meet the RPS requirement within each state. For example, New Jersey needs approximately 255 MW online for the entire 2011 reporting year to meet the RPS requirement. Additionally, the data presented above does not include projects that are in the pipeline or currently going through the registration process in each state program. This data represents specifically the projects that have been approved for the corresponding state SREC markets as of the dates noted.

What Happened to the North Carolina SREC Market?

Posted June 23rd, 2011 by SRECTrade.

Since its inception last summer, the North Carolina SREC market has not materialized into the type of market seen in other states like New Jersey, Maryland and Massachusetts. There are several factors lending to the stagnation of this market, many of which were covered in our blog post “Where is the NC SREC Market?” published last August. Since then, the nascent NC market has continued to dwindle. Most small solar facilities in North Carolina have been selling their SRECs into the DC market, an opportunity that will be closing as new legislation in DC shuts the market to out-of-state facilities.

A few factors impair the viability of the North Carolina market:

1) The absence of both an SACP and transparent market prices make it difficult for projects to find viable SREC-based financing.

2) There is a shortage of buyers. The two main buyers, Duke Energy and Progress Energy, which serve 65% of NC utility customers and provide 71% of the state’s electricity, have both met their NC REPS compliance needs for solar, with Progress locking out SRECs until 2014 and Duke having ample supply through 2018, the final year of RPS compliance.

3) North Carolina accepts 25% of its SRECs from out of state sited facilities.

In an effort to curb these seemingly premature accomplishments by utilities, legislators in North Carolina introduced two important clean energy bills in the last few months: the Solar Jobs Bill (HB495/SB473) and the Energy Independence and Job Creation Bill (SB694). The former aspired to increase the solar requirement for utilities from .2% to .4% of retail electric sales by 2018 in an effort to further develop the state’s solar industry, while also requiring that no more than 12.5% of the RECs applied towards the RPS requirements come from out-of-state generators. If this bill were to pass, it would help catalyze an NC SREC market as utilities would need to find additional sources of SRECs to meet new compliance targets. To create more flexibility, the Energy Independence and Job Creation Bill allowed for “third party sales” of renewable energy, or the ability for facilities with third-party owned renewable systems to buy electricity directly from the third-party without classifying them as utilities, so long as their capacity is under 2 MW. This bill would open the North Carolina market up to third-party financing companies like SunRun, SolarCity and Sungevity, which would foster the development of solar leasing and PPAs.

Unfortunately, neither of these bills were taken up by legislators by the crossover deadline on June 9^th, effectively rendering them dead until the start of the 2013 session. For now, the future remains unclear for a more active SREC market in North Carolina.

Additional Resources:

Relevant Utility Rebates

NC Sustainable Energy Association – legislative news

NC GreenPower – non-profit created by the NC Utilities Commission

Tags: NC Solar, NC SREC, NC SRECs, North Carolina, North Carolina Solar, North Carolina SREC market, North Carolina SREC Trading, North Carolina SRECs, Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, SREC Markets, SREC Programs, SRECs
Posted in North Carolina | 1 Comment »

NJ 2011 Energy Master Plan – Solar RPS on Track

Posted June 10th, 2011 by SRECTrade.

On June 7, 2011, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie announced the issuance of the state’s draft of the 2011 Energy Master Plan (EMP). By way of background, the EMP is a road map describing the energy goals of the state’s executive branch. The plan is required to be issued and updated every 3 years. For details of the 2011 draft please click here. For details on the 2008 EMP click here.

Overall, the report outlines the continued implementation of the NJ Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) solar carve-out. As the report stands, there is no commentary made that would indicate a substantial change to the existing program. The following provides more insight into the aspects of the report that touch specifically on the RPS solar requirements.

The currently legislated RPS target in New Jersey is 22.5%. Of the several goals set forth in 2008 EMP, one sought to surpass this RPS target by achieving 30% of the state’s electricity needs from renewable sources by 2020. The recently released 2011 Draft EMP lays out 5 goals, one of which is to “Maintain support for the renewable energy portfolio standard of 22.5% of energy from renewable sources by 2021.”

The 2011 Draft EMP demonstrates support for behind-the-meter PV installations, highlighting solar’s ability to achieve reduction in carbon emissions and supporting a solar industry in the state, while also taking into consideration the cost associated with solar incentives to ratepayers. The document does not call for a reduction in the existing solar carve-out, but does indicate the following,

“As the all-in capital costs for diverse solar technologies continue to decline, the Board should take action to reduce the SACP through 2025. Doing so will not undermine new solar projects that are worthwhile, but will reasonably minimize the cost burden borne by nonparticipants.”

The Christie administration explains the benefit of larger scale solar projects while noting that they “…should be considered in addition to, not in lieu of, smaller-scale, grid-connected applications.”

The document highlights the fixed SREC requirements implemented by the Solar Energy Advancement and Fair Competition Act (SEAFCA) introduced in January 2010. Instead of a percentage-based solar requirement, this act insulated the requirement from fluctuating electricity usage by implementing targets in fixed gigawatt-hour terms. This proves beneficial, as part of New Jersey’s energy goals include demand response and energy efficiency initiatives that plan to reduce overall electricity usage.

Solar Alternative Compliance Payment (SACP):

1) The current SACP extends through 2016; the SEAFCA requires the BPU to set the schedule through 2026.

2) No time frame is required, but industry stakeholders suggest the implementation of a schedule to provide certainty to debt and equity investors enabling solar development.

EMP Policy Direction and Recommendations regarding the solar carve-out are as follows:

1) Reduce the SACP: One proposal recommends the reduction of the SACP by 20% in 2016 and 2.54% each year thereafter.

2) Subject Solar Renewable Incentives to a Cost Benefit Test: The EMP mentions, “Solar generation can contribute to the reliability of the grid…” and continues by stating, “…subsidies should enhance job growth and retention objectives and should contribute to reduction in taxes without inadvertently transferring wealth from non-participants to participants throughout New Jersey.”

3) Promote Solar PV Installations that Provide Economic and Environmental Benefit: Support for community solar power is encouraged, allowing economies of scale to give residents access to what otherwise could be an expensive individual solar system. Community solar projects help provide decreased electricity usage through the local utility and can spread the cost of distribution system upgrades among the ownership group.

Overall, the 2011 Draft Energy Master Plan lays out the goals for a diversified mix of energy sources throughout the state of New Jersey. The existing overall RPS targets and specific solar carve-out requirements appear to be a priority of the Christie administration. It is clear that the Governor’s office is focused on reducing the economic impact of implementing the RPS while enhancing electricity security and job creation. The EMP has no substantive proposals that should cause concern for stakeholders participating in the state’s SREC market, but at the same time does not include any discussion of expanding New Jersey’s solar goals to continue adoption beyond the current targets.

Maintain support for the renewable energy portfolio standard of 22.5% of energy

from renewable sources by 2021.

Tags: Governor Chris Christie, New Jersey RPS, New Jersey Solar Alternative Compliance Payment, NJ Renewable Portfolio Standard, NJ SACP, NJ Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, NJ SRECs, SACP, Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, SREC aggregation, SREC Aggregator, SRECs
Posted in New Jersey, SREC Markets, State RPS | 1 Comment »

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – May 2011

Posted June 1st, 2011 by SRECTrade.

SRECTrade SREC Markets Report: May 2011

The following post outlines the megawatts of solar capacity certified and/or registered to create SRECs in the SREC markets SRECTrade currently serves.

May 2011 Updated JPEG

PJM Eligible Systems

As of the end of May, there were 15,480 solar PV (15,203) and solar thermal (277) systems registered and eligible to create SRECs in the PJM Generation Attribute Tracking System (GATS) registry. Of these eligible systems, 59 (0.38%) have a nameplate capacity of 1 megawatt or greater, of which only 3 systems are greater than 5 MW. The largest system, currently located in New Jersey, is 18.3 MW, and the second largest, located in Ohio is 12 MW. The third largest system, is located in IL and eligible for the MD, PA, and DC SREC markets, is 10 MW.

Massachusetts DOER Qualified Projects

Capacity Summary By State

The tables above demonstrate the capacity breakout by state. Note, that for all PJM GATS registered projects, each state includes all projects certified to sell into that state. State RPS programs that allow for systems sited in other states to participate have been broken up by systems sited in state and out of state. Additional detail has been provided to demonstrate the total capacity of systems only certified for one specific state market versus being certified for multiple state markets. For example, PA includes projects only certified to sell into the PA SREC market, broken out by in state and out of state systems, as well as projects that are also certified to sell into PA and Other State markets broken out by in state and out of state systems (i.e. OH, DC, MD, DE, NJ). PA Out of State includes systems sited in states with their own state SREC market (i.e. DE) as well as systems sited in states that have no SREC market (i.e. VA). Also, it is important to note that the Current Capacity represents the total megawatts eligible to produce and sell SRECs as of the noted date, while the Estimated Required Capacity – Current and Next Reporting Year represents the estimated number of MW that need to be online on average throughout the reporting period to meet the RPS requirement within each state. For example, New Jersey needs approximately 255 MW online for the entire 2011 reporting year to meet the RPS requirement. Additionally, the data presented above does not include projects that are in the pipeline or currently going through the registration process in each state program. This data represents specifically the projects that have been approved for the corresponding state SREC markets as of the dates noted.

NJ Backs Out of RGGI, Support Remains Strong For NJ SREC Market

Posted May 27th, 2011 by SRECTrade.

Yesterday Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey announced that he would be removing the state from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a 10-state program intended as a carbon dioxide cap-and-trade program intended to reduce the power sector’s emissions levels of the greenhouse gas 10% by 2018.

The move, according to Governor Christie, seeks to cut state budget costs by eliminating participation in a program that he deemed “a failure”. The regional program, however, remains backed by the other Northeast states, and the consequences of the New Jersey withdraw to the RGGI market will most likely be nominal.

Most important for solar customers in New Jersey is to understand that Governor Christie’s decision is not connected to the state’s SREC program. Participation in RGGI does not affect the state’s participation, goals, or support for the SREC market in NJ. Please see our March post describing Christie’s previous endorsement of the SREC market.

Tags: Chris Christie, Christie, Govern, Governor Chris Christie, Governor Christie, NJ RGGI, NJ SREC Prices, NJ SRECs, Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, RGGI, Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, SREC Aggregator, SREC Programs
Posted in New Jersey, SREC Markets | Comments Off on NJ Backs Out of RGGI, Support Remains Strong For NJ SREC Market

Posts Tagged ‘Solar Renewable Energy Certificates’

Congress Passes Extension of Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for Solar

Delaware PSC Approves SREC Procurement Pilot Program

⁺Alternative pricing for projects that received a GEP grant before December 10 2010.
* Prices for tiers 2b, 3 and 4 will be decided by competitive bidding amongst the applicants.

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – August 2011

PA Market Update

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – July 2011

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – June 2011

What Happened to the North Carolina SREC Market?

NJ 2011 Energy Master Plan – Solar RPS on Track

Solar Capacity in the SREC States – May 2011

NJ Backs Out of RGGI, Support Remains Strong For NJ SREC Market

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+Alternative pricing for projects that received a GEP grant before December 10 2010. * Prices for tiers 2b, 3 and 4 will be decided by competitive bidding amongst the applicants.

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⁺Alternative pricing for projects that received a GEP grant before December 10 2010.
* Prices for tiers 2b, 3 and 4 will be decided by competitive bidding amongst the applicants.