SB 629

Abstract

Shared solar programs. Requires the State Corporation Commission to establish by regulation a shared solar program that allows customers of Dominion Virginia to purchase electric power through a subscription in a shared solar facility, which is defined in the bill as a facility that, among other criteria, generates electricity by means of a solar photovoltaic device with a nameplate capacity rating that does not exceed 5,000 kilowatts. Under the program, a subscriber receives a bill credit for the proportional output of a share solar facility attributable to that subscriber. Subscribers are required to pay a minimum bill, established by the Commission, that includes the costs of infrastructure and related services. The bill provides that the Commission shall approve a shared solar program of 150 megawatts with a minimum requirement of 30 percent of low-income customers and that the Commission will approve an additional 50 megawatts upon determining that at least 45 megawatts of the shared solar capacity have been subscribed to by low-income customers. This bill is identical to HB 1634.

Shared solar programs. Requires each investor-owned electric utility to establish a shared solar program that allows customers to purchase electric power through a subscription in a shared solar facility, which is defined in the bill as a facility that, among other criteria, generates electricity by means of a solar photovoltaic device with a nameplate capacity rating that does not exceed 5,000 kilowatts.

Shared solar programs. Requires the State Corporation Commission to establish by regulation a shared solar program that allows customers of Dominion Virginia to purchase electric power through a subscription in a shared solar facility, which is defined in the bill as a facility that, among other criteria, generates electricity by means of a solar photovoltaic device with a nameplate capacity rating that does not exceed 5,000 kilowatts. Under the program, a subscriber receives a bill credit for the proportional output of a share solar facility attributable to that subscriber. Subscribers are required to pay a minimum bill, established by the Commission, that includes the costs of infrastructure and related services. The bill provides that the Commission shall approve a shared solar program of 150 megawatts with a minimum requirement of 30 percent of low-income customers and that the Commission will approve an additional 50 megawatts upon determining that at least 45 megawatts of the shared solar capacity have been subscribed to by low-income customers. This bill is identical to HB 1634.

Distributed electric generation; community solargardens. Authorizes the establishment of community solar gardens,which are required to be owned by a subscriber organization thathas at least 10 subscribers. Subscribers will receive credits ontheir utility bills from energy generated at the solar facility inproportion to the size of their subscription. The output and renewableenergy credits from a solar garden shall be purchased by the utility in the form of net metering credits allocated to the subscribers.To the extent that a subscriber's net metering credit exceeds thesubscriber's electric bill in any billing period, the credit willbe applied against future bills. If the electricity output of thecommunity solar garden is not fully subscribed, the utility is requiredto purchase the unsubscribed renewable energy at a rate equal tothe utility's average hourly incremental cost of electricity supply over the immediately preceding calendar year.