The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities on Sept. 26 approved compensation for new solar owners under the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target or SMART program, a long-term, sustainable solar incentive solution that replaces the Solar Renewable Energy Certificate or SERC II program. The program has a goal of 1,600 megawatts, implying that ten percent of the…
U.S. energy related carbon emissions in 2017 dropped 0.9 percent from the prior year and 14 percent below 2005 levels, according to a Sept. 25 report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Although the gross domestic product grew by 2.3 percent from 2016 to 2017, the agency said that emissions were more than offset by…
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Sept. 25 authorized SunPower Corporation to sell its membership interests in Boulder Solar III LLC to 174 Power Global Corporation and KOMIPO America Inc. The Boulder Solar project is a 125-megawatt solar photovoltaic electric power generating facility under development in Nevada. The project is expected to come online in…
The U.S. Trade Representative on Sept. 19 granted exclusions from import duties for certain solar products. These include 45-W off-grid solar panels, 120-W flexible and semi-flexible off-grid panels designed for motor vehicles and boats, 90-W frameless panels in colors other than black or blue, back contact solar cells, and modules using U.S.-made solar cells. Solar…
The Trump administration issued a 10 percent import tax which will apply to $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, including inverters used in renewable energy installations as well certain types of batteries. According to the U.S. Trade Representative’s Sept. 18 announcement, the tariffs go into effect on Sept. 24 and are set to jump to…
The New York Public Service Commission ruled in favor of NRG Community Solar LLC, finding that the power supplier’s community solar project should be awarded more generous so-called volumetric credits than the rates offered by Central Hudson Gas and Electric Corp. and Orange and Rockland Utilities Inc. In its Sept. 12 ruling, the commission dismissed…
The Arizona Corporation Commission announced Sept. 12 that it approved applications by Tucson Electric Power Co. and UNS Electric Inc. to adjust compensation to customers exporting electricity onto the grid, wrapping up the agency’s years-long bid to develop a replacement of its net metering program. Export rates for Tucson Electric customers who connected solar power…
The Colorado Public Utilities Commission approved Public Service Company of Colorado, a subsidiary of Xcel Energy Inc., to retire two-coal fired units in the Comanche Station, a decade ahead of schedule, as part of the company’s 2016 electric resource plan, according to the agency’s Sept. 10 decision. The commission found that the retirement of the…
Duke Energy Florida LLC seeks to cut to two years the duration for fixing prices for the purchase of electricity from small renewable power suppliers that is mandated under a federal statute, citing the need to protect consumers from rate hikes and overpayments resulting from rapidly changing market conditions. Under the statute, the Public Utility…
The Georgia Public Service Commission on Sept. 6 approved Georgia Power Company’s sixth batch of power purchase agreements for 4.3 megawatts of customer-sited generation under its Renewable Energy Development Initiative, or REDI. The program, designed to procure 50 megawatts of customer-sited solar, was approved last October as part of the commission’s order adopting the company’s…
The California Public Utilities Commission proposed to develop a solar information packet to help utility customers planning to install solar on single-family homes and take service under a net metering successor tariff, according to the agency’s Aug. 29 proposed decision. Investor-owned utilities would have to configure their interconnection portals to ensure that only solar providers…
The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities will open a new docket to investigate Eversource Energy’s proposed revisions to its net metering tariff to ensure compliance with legislation enacted on Aug. 9 amending the requirements for considering demand charges for net metered customers, according to an Aug. 29 memo. In January, the department approved demand charges…