Arizona Public Service now has only one competitor left—rooftop solar—after a vote last week by the Arizona Corporation Commission ended the possibility of energy deregulation in the state.
The ACC said that the Constitutional impediments to deregulating the electric utilities were too great and voted to close its docket in the case. Deregulation would allow customers to choose their power suppliers, which can push prices down because of increased competition.
Following the ACC’s recent decision on deregulation, APS retains its status as a monopoly service provider that does not face any sort of competition within its territory. However, the rooftop solar industry poses a threat to the utility because it represents the only form of potential competition that APS faces. The utility is therefore trying to eliminate a key solar policy called net metering in order to
ensure that it wipes out all possible competitors. Recent polls show that Arizona residents have indicated they are in favor of some level of energy choice and competition, something that only the solar industry is currently providing.
APS suffered a setback last week when it was revealed in a study that Arizona electric utility companies have received $900 million to $1 billion in federal and state subsidies for fossil and nuclear energies since 1985. This upended a key argument used by APS and its defenders that solar in Arizona is benefiting from disproportional subsidies from the federal government.
T.U.S.K. Chairman Barry Goldwater Jr. stated, “APS has made clear its true intentions: Wipe out all competitors, including solar, so it can maintain its robust monopoly status even though that is not in the best interest of its customers and of the state of Arizona. Polls increasingly show solar, and having energy choice and competition, is extremely popular in Arizona and among Republicans. APS thumbs its monopoly nose at these concepts and these poll numbers because it thinks it can. It’s our job to make sure they don’t get away with ignoring the will of the people and to make sure that their lone competitor—solar—stays alive and continues to thrive here in sunny Arizona. Some competition is good for APS to encourage them finally to innovate rather than use politics to kill increased energy efficiency that hurts their profits.”
T.U.S.K. (Tell Utilities Solar won’t be Killed) was formed to stand for energy choice and energy independence. It opposes APS’ effort to kill the rooftop solar market in Arizona with new solar taxes.
To learn more about T.U.S.K. visit www.dontkillsolar.com
T.U.S.K. believes that rooftop solar is similar to a charter school—it provides a competitive alternative to the monopoly. Monopoly utilities aren’t known for reducing costs or for driving business innovation, but the Arizona solar industry is. Solar companies have a track record of aggressive cost reduction in Arizona. The more people use rooftop solar, the less power they need to buy from the utilities. Energy independence for Arizonans means smaller profits for the utilities, so APS is doing everything it can to stop the spread of independent solar.
