Join us for and information and discussion session with the experts at Solar Energy Focus 2011, November 17-18 in DC.
Solar in Sussex County, Delaware. Source: DNREC
States interested in promoting solar energy through policy are increasingly turning to the solar-carve-out option. Today, over half of all states with a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) have a carve-out, either focused on distributed generation or specifically on solar energy. While an RPS requires the state to obtain a certain amount or percentage of electricity from renewables, a carve-out states that a specified amount or percentage of that renewable electricity must be generated by solar. Thus, these policies are an effective way to promote solar, which has unique attributes among renewable energy technologies, such as peak-shaving and significant job-creation.
Delaware’s RPS is relatively aggressive, requiring 25% renewables by compliance year 2025, of which 3.5% is to be generated by solar.
A pilot SREC procurement program has been proposed in Delaware by the Renewable Energy Task Force, a body created by legislation in 2010. The procurement program creates market mechanisms for four different capacity-based categories of solar generators. The four-tier system will ensure that the carve-out is met by both large-, medium-, and small-scale installations, which maximizes the economic and reliability benefits of distributed solar generation. The pricing of SRECs will be set for smaller systems, making financing for small residential and commercial projects easily obtainable and less risky. For larger systems, the SREC pricing is more market-based, keeping costs to a minimum.
The program will be administered by Delaware’s Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU), an independent not-for-profit already successfully implementing a number of energy efficiency programs in the state.
If you are interested in learning more about Delaware’s SREC procurement program, or what goes into developing and implementing a solar carve-out, please join us, MDV-SEIA, at the Solar Energy Focus 2011 Conference this November 17-18 in Washington, DC. The conference will feature a breakout session focused specifically on this topic, featuring Dale Davis, President of CMI Solar Electric and President of the Delaware Solar Energy Coalition and Glenn Moore, Regional VP of Delmarva Power, both experts involved in developing Delaware’s pilot SREC program. Register by Oct. 14th and receive a discount. We hope to see you there!
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