Catalyze, an independent power producer (IPP) and integrated developer of distributed renewable energy assets, is collaborating with GreenSpark Solar, an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company based in Rochester, NY, to build ten projects totaling 60 MW of community solar. This partnership will expand Catalyze’s portfolio in New York, including sites such as the Amherst solar project and others acquired via a recent transaction with BW Solar.
The community solar projects will be partially funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) via the NY-Sun program. The partnership will contribute to the state’s initiatives to install 10 GW of distributed solar by 2030 and achieve 70% renewable energy in electricity generation by 2030. In addition, $100 million in funding from NY Green Bank will support these community projects.
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Learn about the power of Community Solar in New Jersey and the important role that your municipality can play in the process! Community Solar allows residents to tap into renewable energy from solar projects nearby. Unlike traditional solar setups, installed on the rooftops of residences, these projects are strategically located on the rooftops of larger buildings, ensuring inclusive and cost-effective access to clean energy and making smart use of already developed areas.
Join us for an educational virtual workshop, in collaboration with Sustainable Jersey and Solar Landscape, as we delve into the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities Community Solar Energy Program from a municipal perspective. This rapidly expanding initiative is greenlighting projects across the state, granting renters and homeowners access to sustainable energy solutions.
Gain insights tailored for your environmental commission and municipality. This session will equip you with essential information and resources to navigate the program effectively and ensure you know the most pertinent questions to ask before moving forward.
Registration:
ANJEC Members: No charge
Non-Members: $15
Learn about the power of Community Solar in New Jersey and the important role that your municipality can play in the process! Community Solar gives residents the opportunity to tap into renewable energy from solar projects near their communities. Unlike traditional solar setups installed on the rooftops of residences, these projects are strategically located on the rooftops of larger buildings, ensuring inclusive and cost-effective access to clean energy and making smart use of already-developed areas.
Join us for an educational virtual workshop, in collaboration with Sustainable Jersey and Solar Landscape, as we delve into the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities Community Solar Energy Program from a municipal perspective. This rapidly expanding initiative is greenlighting projects across the state, granting renters and homeowners access to sustainable energy solutions.
Gain insights tailored for your environmental commission and municipality. This session will equip you with essential information and resources to navigate the program effectively and ensure you know the most pertinent questions to ask before moving forward.
Registration:
ANJEC Members: No charge
Non-Members: $15
On a farm field east of Faribault, Minnesota, a 1.3-megawatt solar array provides electricity to serve about 180 subscribers.
The project, which occupies about six acres, is an example of community solar—also called “shared solar” or “solar gardens”—a kind of development in which subscribers receive credits on their monthly utility bills for the solar electricity produced.
I’ve found that one of the biggest challenges in writing about community solar is explaining what it is, so I turned to Maria McCoy, a researcher for the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a nonprofit that closely tracks the programs.
“Community solar is meant to be an option for folks who can’t put solar on their own roofs, whether they don’t own a home or have the financial ability to put solar up there or have a lot of shady trees,” she said.
The large majority of subscribers and projects are in six states: Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, and New York. About 20 states have active programs and many of the rest have rules that limit the ability of developers to do subscription-based projects.
Community solar has its origins in ideas about democratizing access to clean energy, which has translated into laws mostly in blue states.
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On Friday September 17, 2021 Delaware Governor John Carney signed three unique bills all seeking to tackle different environmental issues, Senate Bills 2, 21, and Senate Substitute 1 for Senate Bill 24.
This update will focus on Senate Bill 2 which facilitates development of community owned energy generating facilities and renewable energy in particular, solar power projects in the First State.
Senate Bill 2 has since prompted solar developers to explore new opportunities for these projects. The date on which Delmarva Power will start accepting applications is just around the corner. In this article, we will give some background and practical pointers for solar developers and landowners seeking to take advantage of this new legislation.
Expanding Solar Power in the State
Over the last decade, there has been significant growth in the use of solar power in the United States and around the world. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, the average annual growth rate in solar energy has been 42 percent over the past ten years. However, Delaware has arguably lagged behind this trend. Senate Bill 2 was passed in an effort to change that.
The bill, originally introduced in the Senate’s Environment & Energy Committee this past June, amends Titles 6, 26, and 29 of the Delaware Code relating to community-owned energy generating facilities and renewable energy. The legislation will involve a rulemaking by the Public Services Commission to culminate on March 11, 2022.
What the Law Will Do
Senate Bill 2 was enacted to eliminate current barriers to community-based solar photovoltaic systems in Delaware. The legislation sets up a regulatory process to be implemented by the Delaware Public Service Commission (PSC) with consumer protection provided by Delaware’s Department of Justice. Among other things, Senate Bill 2 will:
Authorize multiple types of system ownership models, defined as “community-owned energy generating facilities”
Allow a maximum system size of 4 megawatts (MW)
Eliminate a previous requirement that all customers of a system be located on the same distribution feeder
Eliminate a previous requirement that all customers of a system be identified before the system can be built
Provide for the regulation of community-owned energy generating facilities by the PSC and specify the fees and other requirements for the system to be granted a Certificate to Operate
Provide compensation to the system owner for 10% or less of unsubscribed energy
Require system owners to certify that the system serves at least 15% low income customers; and
Require the PSC to engage in rule-making in consultation with Delaware consumer protection authorities, and promulgate rules and regulations by March 11, 2022.
This process has begun unfolding at a fast pace, with solar developers rushing to secure rights to suitable land, as well as prepare their applications.
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EDP Renewables NA Distributed Generation, the distributed generation business unit of EDP Renewables, has been given the green light to develop the company’s 13th community solar project in New York State in 2021.
The project brings the company’s total community solar capacity to 54 MW in New York alone. The company has not yet shared the project’s specific location, what hardware will be used in the installation, nor any details on potential construction partners.
In the last two years, New York has made unprecedented community solar capacity additions. According to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), the state added 549 MW of community solar capacity in 2020, leading the nation. More than 90% of the state’s 2.7 GW pipeline of projects under development that have been awarded NY-Sun incentives, and are expected to come online in the next two years, are community solar, comprising more than 800 projects.
Solar Landscape, one of New Jersey’s leading solar developers, has announced one of its first-year community solar projects is energized and delivering clean energy to Bergen and Hudson County residents. The project, located on Catherine Road in Teterboro, is generating more than 1.9-kilowatt hours of electricity annually, powering 260 homes and preventing more than 1,300 metric tons of carbon dioxide from entering the local atmosphere every year.
The company also announced the completion of construction on three additional projects located in North Bergen, Wood Ridge and Edison. All of the projects are part of Year 1 of the NJBPU’s Community Solar Pilot Program, which is administered by New Jersey’s Clean Energy ProgramTM. Collectively, across all four projects, 51% of the electricity generated will be sold to low- and moderate-income households.
“It is great to see the Governor’s Energy Master Plan already making a meaningful impact in North Jersey,” said Secaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli. “Community solar will bring environmental justice to marginalized communities and cleaner air and lower utility costs to NJ residents. We support statewide clean energy initiatives as we continue on the path to 100% renewable energy by 2050.”
Community solar projects give all residents the chance to participate in the benefits of clean solar energy without the need for solar panels on their rooftops. Residents enroll online and the solar power from a large, local solar project is delivered to their homes.
Enrollment is open to renters and property owners with no cost to join, no long-term contracts and guaranteed cost savings. In addition to developing the projects, Solar Landscape is working with non-profit organizations and community leaders to educate residents about the benefits of community solar.
LOWVILLE, NY — Lewis County has entered into an agreement with the New York Power Authority to explore the possibility of creating a community solar project on under-utilized county-owned land. The property adjacent to the county Solid Waste Facility at 7952 Route 26 not currently in use will be analyzed for solar suitability by the Authority through the Community Solar and Battery Storage program introduced by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in February.
According to county Planning Director Casandra Buell, the program is designed to work with municipalities on creating ready-made sites for small-scale solar projects in the same way former brownfield, industrial and landfill sites are being prepped around the state for large-scale projects through the 94-C siting process that went into effect this year, replacing Article 10.
“Lewis County doesn’t (own) any of those large properties that aren’t forested and protected,” Mrs. Buell said. “The only opportunity that we had to lease land that we had available was the solid waste facility. There’s land surrounding that facility that’s under-utilized mainly because it’s wetlands and it’s kind of a wonky area.”
“Wonky” for most development could work well for a community solar project.
Mrs. Buell reached out to the Power Authority as soon as she learned of the new program with the solid waste property in mind.
This is not the county’s first foray into solar.
In 2019, the county’s solar array — built and owned by the Connecticut-based Greenskies Renewable Energy — began pumping power into the grid, decreasing the county’s energy bill by about 50%. About 25% of the energy produced goes to the county-owned hospital.
The 2-megawatt array was not expected to produce enough to cover all of the county’s and hospital’s energy needs.
A community solar project, however, will result in a number of benefits to the community that could not be part of the county’s existing solar array which was a simple power purchase agreement with National Grid giving credits toward each power bill, according to Mrs. Buell.
“This (would be a) community solar facility, so the county would have the ability to receive monthly lease payments for the property to be used for solar and on top of that we would have access to up to 60% of the energy produced from that solar farm. That’s amazing. We can have the best of both worlds,” she said. “We can have that energy localized and we would have a revenue stream coming in for the use of the land.”
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(The Center Square) – Proposed legislation enabling electricity credits for community solar panels may just benefit Pennsylvania’s struggling farmers the most.
At least, so say the clean energy groups testifying in favor of House Bill 531 this week. The proposal, under consideration in the House Consumer Affairs Committee, would allow residents to invest in solar panels installed on open land and receive a credit on their electricity bill as if the units were on their own roofs instead.
“There is no question that HB 531 would help farmers to diversify their profits and productivity, and take advantage of the unused open space on hillsides, on the roofs of barns, chicken houses and other structures,” said Chad Forcey, executive director of the Pennsylvania Conservative Energy Forum. “On the land itself, farmers can take advantage of temporary development enhancements. Soybeans, pollinator-friendly crops and even beehives can flourish underneath solar panels.”
Leslie Elder, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Director for the Coalition for Community Solar Access, said investors will move forward with more than 220 “shovel-ready” projects in over 40 counties – as soon as the bill passes. The deals have already secured between $3 and $4 million in land leases for farmers.
She said the legislation provides a lifeline to farmers, hit hard by tanking milk prices and broken supply chains.
The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau likewise lent their support to the legislation in 2019, recognizing that agriculture can “play a key developmental role.”
“This is a case where there is strength in numbers,” Consumer Affairs Committee Chairman Brad Roae, R-Crawford, said. “When people work together and pool their resources, they often can accomplish more together than they ever could while they were apart.”
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TurningPoint Energy and TurningPoint Energy have broken ground on the King community solar project in North Smithfield, R.I. The project, originally developed by TurningPoint Energy and now owned by Nautilus, is being constructed by DEPCOM Power as part of the State of Rhode Island’s Community Net Metering Pilot Program.
The project includes two solar arrays totaling 12.44 MW AC of community solar capacity and is expected to be operational in 2020.
The King community solar project abuts the Landfill Resource and Recovery Superfund site that is currently undergoing a long-term remedial response under the oversight of the Environmental Protection Agency. TurningPoint Energy and Nautilus have coordinated closely with Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and EPA representatives to ensure that the project design has considered any potential future remediation which may be required. The project will incorporate environmental measures including a pollinator-friendly seed mix around and underneath the array.
“Projects like this, which simultaneously clean up our land and make our economy more green, are the future of our state,” says Governor Gina M. Raimondo. “I’m thrilled that once this array is complete, more than 3,000 Rhode Island households will have the option to use clean energy and save money.”
This is TurningPoint Energy’s and Nautilus Solar’s second Rhode Island community solar project to break ground as part of the Community Net Metering Solar Pilot Program, created in 2016. The Hopkins Hill community solar project broke ground earlier this year.
Nautilus is the owner of the project and responsible for managing the project, overseeing construction, and maintaining its long-term performance.
Above photo: Courtesy of Scott Lapham Photography. Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo (second from right) joined State Representative Carlos Tobon, Jared Schoch (president of Turning Point Energy), Laura Stern (co-CEO of Nautilus Solar Energy), Gary Ezovski (town administrator of North Smithfield) and Carol Grant (commissioner, Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources) for a ground-breaking ceremony at the King community solar project. Facebook10TwitterPrintEmail
TUESDAY, APRIL 9
