Court Rich, Partner, Rose Law Group, says, “The unintended consequences of this decision is if you are a government protected monopoly in Arizona, yesterday was a great day. It is not every day that the government steps in and squashes your competition. Unfortunately for private players in this market space, the government did just that to the benefit of the monopoly utility. With a Commission so very focused on the free market, deregulation and individual choice I have to hope that once they take careful review of the unintended consequences of this somewhat quick decision, there will be some meaningful modifications. The solar industry was relying less and less on policies that were needed to support solar and was on track to be free from such policies very soon. ”
*******
ACC slashes TEP’s home solar incentive, kills commercial plan
By David Wichner
Arizona Daily Star
If you’d like to discuss energy issues, contact Court Rich, Co-Chair of Rose Law Group’s Renewable Energy Department at crich@roselawgroup.com
State regulators on Wednesday approved an annual renewable-energy plan for Tucson Electric Power Co. that further slashes incentives for residential rooftop solar installations and for now eliminates incentives for commercial renewable-energy installations.
Residential TEP customers who install solar photovoltaic systems will be eligible for incentives of 10 cents per watt, down from incentives last year that stepped down from 75 cents to 10 cents per watt as funding was drawn down.
TEP had proposed a residential incentive level of 50 cents per watt and a flat budget of $5 million for such installations. The plan approved Wednesday cuts the overall residential budget proposed by TEP to about $745,000 for 2013.
Residential customers who install solar hot-water equipment will be eligible for incentive payments of 40 cents per kilowatt hour equivalent, compared with 50 cents sought by TEP.
The overall budget for TEP’s 2013 renewable-energy plan – required under a state mandate that regulated utilities to boost their use of renewables to 15 percent by 2025 – was increased to $35.8 million, from about $30 million in 2012, reflecting larger outlays for big, utility-scale projects coming online.
The monthly surcharges ratepayers will pony up to support the renewables program was not available Wednesday. The usage-based surcharge for residential customers was capped at $3.15 last year.
The all-Republican Corporation Commission completely cut incentives for commercial renewable-energy installations, citing the fact that TEP has met its goal for commercial renewable-energy generation for the next several years.
Also: Rate hike for Tucson Electric Power gets an early OK
Oro Valley approves $2.1 million for underground lines
[OPINION] Solar-ready home building makes sense
