On Friday April 8, 2016, the MA Department of Energy Resources (DOER) announced  the long awaited emergency regulation regarding the SREC 2 program. The following key provisions are part of the emergency regulation:

1) Extends eligibility to all projects >25 kW constructed within nine months of the effective date of the emergency regulation

2) Extends eligibility to all projects <=25 kW interconnected by start of the next program

3) Provides compliance exemption to retail electricity suppliers for load under existing contracts signed within 30 days of the effective date of the regulation

4) Ensures SREC II program will end in 2027 at the latest

So, what does this all mean?

Systems equal to or less than 25 kW DC

A solar facility which has received an authorization to interconnect or permission to operate (PTO) from its local distribution company and has submitted a Statement of Qualification Application by the effective date of a new solar incentive program will qualify for the SREC II program. The PTO must be dated before the start date of the new solar incentive program and after 1/1/2013.

Systems greater than 25 kW DC

To qualify for the SREC II program, a solar facility must demonstrate that it is constructed and must submit a Statement of Qualification Application by January 8, 2017.

OTHER KEY DETAILS

Statement of Qualification: Knollwood Energy of MA will submit this application and all required documentation on behalf of our customers. In the case where we have previously submitted an application, we will be contacting the installer if there are any missing items.

Incentive Program 3: DOER recently hired a third party to conduct a financial analysis of different incentive program options. It is anticipated the earliest a new program will start will be the beginning of 2017. Knollwood Energy will provide updates as additional information is announced.

SREC Pricing: Load servers will not have their requirements increased to buy SRECs if they have existing contracts. This means that the market will be more oversupplied, which will probably mean slightly lower SREC prices in the near term, until the increased installations are adjusted for properly in the states’ demand calculations.

Emergency Regulation: The complete emergency regulation filed by DOER is redlined here [http://www.mass.gov/eea/docs/eea/energy/225-cmr-14-emergency-final.pdf]. This will be effective immediately but must be ratified within 90 days. DOER will be announcing shortly the next steps in the rule making process, including information on public hearings and deadlines for submitting written comments.

In summary, this is a great outcome for the solar market and we want to thank MA DOER for addressing these issues in a way that keeps the solar industry working.