As states continue to reexamine net metering programs in the evolving distributed solar landscape, the industry faces a new challenge: a petition asking federal regulators to exercise jurisdiction over these state-administered programs that compensate behind-the-meter generation for grid-exported energy.
The Nevada Public Utilities Commission on June 24 announced that subscriptions for the third tier of its net metering program reached the 80-megawatt threshold established by a 2017 law, which created a four-tier structure to compensate customers for grid-exported energy. There is no capacity limit for Tier four, which is now open for applications, but…...
The New York Department of Public Service and the state’s Energy Research and Development Authority on June 18 released a whitepaper that identifies a framework to achieve the state’s goal of sourcing 70 percent of its electricity from renewable energy by 2030 under the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. Achieving the goal is…...
Democratic Governor Phil Murphy on June 16 announced plans to develop an offshore wind port on an artificial island along the Delaware River. The 200-acre New Jersey Wind Port would provide a location for staging, assembly, and manufacturing activities for projects planned along the East Coast. The $300 to $400 million green infrastructure project positions…...
Xcel Energy Inc. on June 17 filed a plan with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to invest almost $3 billion in accelerated and incremental projects in an effort to help the state’s economy recover from the slowdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The proposal follows the commission’s request for information from electric and gas utilities…...
Rocky Mountain Power, a unit of PacifiCorp, proposed to close its net metering program, which compensates customers for exported energy at the retail rate, and create a successor program that would provide compensation based on an export credit rate, according to a June 12 press release from the Idaho Public Utilities Commission. The new net…...
In a move commended by offshore wind advocates, federal regulators released a much-awaited environmental analysis of the $2.8 billion Vineyard Wind project, which would be the first U.S. large-scale offshore wind project, and other facilities planned along the East Coast. The review is a step forward in the project’s permitting process and critical for the future offshore wind industry as it braces for challenges from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and prolonged permitting timelines.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management released the long-awaited supplement to the draft environmental review of Vineyard Wind LLC’s 800-megawatt wind farm offshore Massachusetts. Last year, the bureau postponed the final review for the $2.8 billion project, in order to undertake a supplemental analysis to understand the cumulative impacts of multiple projects proposed in the…...
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority on June 5 submitted a petition to the Public Service Commission, requesting approval to launch and advance the Build-Ready program through 2025. The move is in response to recent legislation that established a Clean Energy Resources Development and Incentives Program through which the agency will advance…...
The North Dakota Public Service Commission on June 10 issued a permit allowing Northern Divide Wind LLC to build a 200-megawatt wind generating facility and associated transmission line in Burke County. The NextEra Energy Resources subsidiary submitted a revised project application after a previous proposal was denied over concerns by federal and state regulators about…
Prices in the 10-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative’s latest carbon auction rose to the highest since 2015, defying impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic as two more states gear up to join the initiative. Meanwhile, revenues from California’s post-pandemic auction tumbled to $25 million, less than 5 percent of the previous auction proceeds, pointing to a need for reforms for predictable outcomes and a long-term strategy to fund climate programs.
The Arkansas Public Service Commission on June 1 issued an order retaining the current net metering rate structure, which credits rooftop solar customers at retail rates for net excess generation, through the end of 2022. The commission decided that systems under 1 megawatt should receive the full 1:1 retail rate credit until Dec. 31, 2022…...