California Community Solar Isn’t Working. SoCal Edison Wants to Redesign It

The utility would gather customers for community projects, alongside other new 100 percent clean electricity options.

Southern California Edison is asking regulators for permission to improve clean energy offerings for customers who can’t install rooftop solar.

The utility connects between 3,000 and 5,000 solar roofs per month, but many of its 15 million customers don’t own their homes or have access to a suitable rooftop for solar generation. By the company’s own admission, the existing program to serve those residents with community solar didn’t work well enough.

New Jersey Passes Nuclear Subsidies, Boosts Renewables Target to 50%

The RPS bill includes a 2 gigawatt energy storage target and sets higher goals for solar. The nuclear bill includes a lot of controversy.

The New Jersey state legislature passed three bills on Thursday that are designed to maintain and enhance access to low-carbon resources in the Garden State.

One piece of legislation (A3723/S2314) boosts New Jersey’s renewable portfolio standard to 35 percent by 2025 and 50 percent by 2030 — putting the state in line with clean energy leaders, New York and California. The same bill also increases New Jersey’s solartarget, enables the launch of a community solar program and establishes a process to deploy 2 gigawatts of energy storage by 2030.

Duke Energy Proposes 'Community Solar' and Other Renewables Programs for N.C.

Duke Energy Corp. plans to seek bids for at least two megawatts worth of “community solar” projects in North Carolina this year under proposals filed with regulators to comply with a new state law expanding access to renewable energy options for its utility customers.

Community solar programs involve a central solar project which sells shares to residential or business customers who want to use solar power to offset some of their monthly power use. Charlotte-based Duke (NYSE: DUK) proposes to have subsidiaries Duke Energy Carolinas and Duke Energy Progress each seek competitive bids for a one-megawatt solar project in their respective service areas in North Carolina.

Illinois Utilities Begin to Design Community Solar Programs Under New Energy Law

Illinois utilities and regulators are putting into motion plans for community solar programs under the state’s Future Energy Jobs Act that passed last year.

In filings with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) last month, ComEd outlined proposed terms and conditions for “Community Supply,” also referred to as community solar. Ameren Illinois has also recently filed paperwork with the ICC outlining changes to net metering policies as the state moves to implement community solar.

New Illinois Law Encourages ComEd to Champion Community Solar

Under a new tariff structure, consumers could subscribe to community solar projects and get credits on their bills equal to their share of the project.

Could Illinois’ new Future Energy Jobs Act (FEJA) provide an impetus to a new net metering-like structure for community solar projects? If a new proposal from ComEd is approved by the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) (which regulates utilities in the state, that could become a reality.

Community Solar Goes to Washington

Legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate aims to move community solar forward nationwide. The bill would make permanent a U.S. Department of Energy program that promotes community solar, as well as boosting community solar in low-income communities and encouraging federal government participation in community solar.

Can new federal legislation help bring solar access to everyone?

Minnesota Cities Learn from Buying Community Solar Together

The nation’s first ever attempt to have municipal governments collectively buy power from community solar gardens was a modest success, according to a new report.

While municipalities in other parts of the country have come together to buy rooftop solar, none had ever tried it to capture cost savings in the nascent community solar marketplace, said Trevor Drake, project manager at the Great Plains Institute.

Minnesota has one of the country’s largest and best developed community solar markets, with more than 100 MW expected to go live this year. The cities involved in the “Governmental Solar Garden Subscriber Collaborative” are expected to contract for about 33 MW, according to Drake.

Solar Policy Actions Spiked in 2016, With a Focus on Net Metering

Findings from the NC Clean Energy Technology Center’s year-end solar report

While solar policy debates have already been raging for several years, the discussion is far from over.

Nearly every single U.S. state took some type of policy action related to distributed solar in 2016, according to the NC Clean Energy Technology Center's (NCCETC) year-end edition of The 50 States of Solar. A total of 212 solar policy actions were taken by states and utilities across the country, which represents 37 more actions than in 2015. These developments occurred in 47 states plus Washington, D.C.

Maryland PSC Approves Final Community Solar Regulations

Maryland could soon be one of only 11 US states with community solar programs, as the state’s Public Service Commission has just approved its final regulations for establishing a three-year pilot community solar program, which are expected to be published in the coming weeks and become final in mid-July.

By allowing more residents, especially low and moderate income residents, as well as those without ownership of their roofs or who live in multi-unit buildings, to participate in the solar energy revolution, Maryland’s community solar program could enable a more inclusive renewable energy ecosystem in the state. Part of the new community solar regulations speak directly to that inclusiveness, with about 30% (60 MW) of the state’s community solar cap (200 MW) being set aside for low to moderate income residents.

Australian Greens to Out-Do Labor, Coalition in Community Renewable Energy Policy

The Australian Greens are expected to announce new policy that would spend $265 million on helping Australian communities to set up their own clean energy projects, including solar.

The policy, to be released in full on Saturday, is believed to propose tax-free earnings for households and businesses that invest in community-owned renewable energy projects, and the development of a Community Energy Powerhouses Start-Up Fund.

Not unlike federal Labor’s Community Renewable Hubs plan, but with a bigger budget, the proposed Greens $150 million start-up fund would set up 50 Community Energy powerhouses, with up to two years of operational funding.

Community Solar Comes of Age on the West Coast of the US

A neighbourhood solar experiment in Washington gains traction in other states.

Nancy Lillquist was never optimistic that solar panels would work on her roof in Ellensburg, Wash., a college town on the Cascade Mountains' dry eastern slope. The neighbourhood's big conifers blocked the sun. As a city council member, she noted the irony: Even as she and her fellow council members advocated for solar, they were also encouraging planting more trees for shade.

Maryland Governor Signs Community Solar Bill

Maryland is looking to increase their solar presence with a new bill that will allow construction of community solar projects through a three-year pilot program. The bill -- House Bill (HB) 1087 -- was signed by Gov. Hogan this week.

HB 1087 requires the community solar projects to be regulated under the Public Service Commission (PSC), who will also provide the structure of the program -- which includes generation of electricity and allocation of costs to subscribers.

"This pilot program is a key component to our industry's goal of increasing access to solar energy," said Rick Peters, Maryland-DC-Virginia Solar Energy Industries Association (MDV-SEIA) board president and CEO of Solar Energy Services. "In an increasingly bipartisan fashion, Maryland legislators continue to lead on renewable energy policy -- creating jobs and opportunity for Marylanders."