Renewable Energy Law News from week of 11/17

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Extending the Renewable Energy PTC

Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA) and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) have introduced legislation aimed at extending the Production Tax Credit, or PTC.

First conceived in 1992 as part of the Energy Policy Act (H.R. 776), the PTC has been renewed year after year and also incorporated into the Energy Policy Act of 2005 as part of that Act’s Renewable Energy Production Incentives. The PTC currently provides a 2.2-cent per kilowatt-hour (kWh) on wind, closed-loop biomass, and geothermal resources for the first decade of a renewable energy facility’s life. Other renewable forms of energy receive a tax credit of 1 cent per kWh.

New German Solar PV Tariffs the Price to Beat Worldwide

Germany has announced lower solar photovoltaic (solar PV) tariffs for 2012 and the industry has taken the expected step in stride.

The German network agency, the Bundesnetzagentur, announced the new feed-in tariffs for solar PV as part of automatic adjustment of the tariffs based on the amount of solar capacity being installed. Because of continued strong growth in solar PV installations, the new tariffs are 15 percent less than those in 2011.

The German solar industry association, the Bundesverband Solarwirtschaft (BSW), applauded the much anticipated action. "The solar industry has delivered on its promise of delivering more and cheaper solar electricity," said Carsten Körnig, the association's executive director.
 

Wind Rush: Wind, Not Solar, Wins In 1603 Program

How the renewable energy industry copes with the loss of incentives this year will test its maturity and the success of the stimulus funding.

In many ways, the renewable energy industry is facing a pivotal moment as the 1603 grant program is set to expire this year, the $2.3 billion for the 48C advanced manufacturing tax credit has already been allocated and the Department of Energy has completed its work of handing out more than $36 billion in its loan guarantee program.

Solar projects taking stimulus funding may have grabbed the headlines, but wind has been the real winner from the Obama administration's flagship grant program meant to fill the void in tax equity that usually funds the renewables industry.

Renewable Energy Law News from week of November 9

Photo via Jasmic

Bill to extend U.S. wind energy tax credit goes to committee 

U.S. Representatives Dave Reichert (R-WA) and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), members of the tax-writing House Committee on Ways and Means, on Nov. 2 introduced the American Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit Extension Act (H.R. 3307). This bipartisan bill extends the tax incentive for the production of wind power, geothermal power, hydropower, and other forms of renewable energy through 2016. The bill is currently in the House Ways and Means Committee.

H.R. 3307 provides a clean, 4-year extension of the existing production tax credit for wind, biomass, geothermal, small irrigation, landfill gas, trash, and hydropower. It was created in the Energy Policy Act of 1992 and has frequently been extended in year-end packages of expiring tax provisions, as well as in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The current incentive is set to expire next year for wind and in 2013 for other renewable energy forms. Advocates note that historically, at least six to eight months before the tax credit expires, financial lenders hesitate in providing capital for projects because of the uncertainty created by the pending expiration of the credit, stalling projects from coming online. The rush to complete projects as the PTC nears expiration also reduces projects and adds costs, resulting in higher electricity prices. 

Virginia considers net metering and utility standby charges

Virginia, like many states, allows grid-connected electricity customers to use customer-sited generation to offset its electric bill. This practice is called net metering.

Virginia regulators are now considering a proposal by utility Dominion Virginia Power to impose two “standby” charges on net-metered solar photovoltaic systems larger than 10 kW. The policy questions raised by this case appear in other contexts where incentives for clean, distributed generation run up against utility ratemaking considerations. Utilities typically argue that they need to allocate costs fairly among their customers, while customer-sited generation advocates point to both the value of distributed generation and the array of incentives promoting customer-sited generation.

Ontario’s FIT Being Reviewed

Ontario’s Ministry of Energy has launched a comprehensive review of its renewable energy Feed-In Tariff (FIT) program. The review is mandated by the province’s Green Energy Act, the two year old legislation which originally established the FIT subsidy.

Project developers expect Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty’s Liberal government to cut the subsidy, but questions remain as to the extent of the cut. Currently the FIT subsidy for large-scale solar power plants is priced at around C$443 ($435) a megawatt/hour.

The declining cost of solar and wind power generation and anger from Ontario residents over rising electricity bills may influence the review. During last month’s provincial elections Progressive Conservative candidate Tim Hudak tried to harness ratepayers’ anger by blaming the rising cost of electricity on the FIT program. Hudak promised to kill large portions of the Green Energy Act if elected.

Dunkiel Saunders Celebrates Opening of First Wind’s Sheffield Wind Project

In the distance, the Sheffield turbines
salute the project's completion.

A unique celebration took place last Wednesday on the top of Granby Mountain and Libby Hill in Sheffield, Vermont as the Sheffield Wind Project, developed by First Wind, was inaugurated with a ceremonial ribbon cutting attended by the Governor, state legislators, utility representatives, Sheffield residents and numerous others.  The project, which began officially operating at full power in mid-October, has a capacity of 40 megawatts and is expected to generate about 115,000 megawatt hours a year – that's the equivalent of meeting the needs of all 15,000 homes in Caledonia County.

 

Dunkiel Saunders has been involved in the project for more than six years, providing legal counsel and strategic advice to First Wind since the project's earliest development stages in 2005.  Over the course of the project, our attorneys assisted First Wind on a wide range of regulatory, litigation, permitting and finance-related issues, including obtaining the project's overall state approval -- Certificate of Public Good (CPG) -- from the Vermont Public Service Board (PSB), as well as state and federal environmental permits, municipal approvals, and host town agreements. The PSB's original order approving the project is available here.

 

Dunkiel Saunders also successfully represented First Wind before the Vermont Supreme Court in defending against an appeal of the Public Service Board’s CPG; in federal court in appeals related to FAA lighting and NEPA compliance; before the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources and the Vermont Environmental Court to obtain stormwater permits for the project; and in a final appeal of the construction stormwater permit to the Vermont Supreme Court.  Litigation over the project ended last week when opponents formally withdrew their final appeal at the Vermont Supreme Court, after construction of the Project was completed and Dunkiel Saunders moved to dismiss the case on the basis of mootness.

 

For First Wind and Dunkiel Saunders, as well as the many other individuals who contributed to the completion of the project, the ceremony marked the culmination of several years of hard work and the recognition of their success.

 

First Wind has put together a nice video on the development of the project and its contribution to the local economy:



More news on the ribbon-cutting is also available here and here.