Item 21: Staff Briefing Solar Standard Offer Program — original pdf
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Solar Standard Offer Richard Génecé Vice President, Customer Energy Solutions Tim Harvey Manager, Customer Renewable Solutions September 2024 ©Austin Energy Solar Standard Offer Adds Capacity to Community Solar Palmer Event Center AUS Blue Garage Carports La Loma Community Solar Farm 2 Solar Standard Offer Format Customer Sited Solar System Owner & Site Host Community Solar Austin Energy Pays System Owner 3 Solar Standard Offer Desired Outcomes Community Solar Expansion Self-sustaining, scalable and replicable Community Solar model. Environmental Stewardship Increase local renewable energy production. Customer Satisfaction Increase solar developer participation and community solar subscriptions. Access, Equity & Affordability Enable solar access and bill savings for low-income customers. 4 Solar Standard Offer – Rate of Payment • Austin Energy pays solar system owner a rate per kilowatt-hour of energy produced, net of electric charges. • The payment rate is based on Austin Energy’s avoided costs. Avoided Cost Components Description ERCOT Energy Savings Ancillary Service Savings Transmission Savings Austin Energy’s average price of energy in the ERCOT market at the time the solar energy is produced. The average cost to ensure the right number and type of power generation sources are running (to prevent an outage). Calculates savings based on • • the average generation at peak times, the sum of wholesale transmission service charges, and the total solar generation. • 5 Solar Standard Offer – Rate of Payment Adjusted Every Three Years At launch, solar systems: • Less than 1 MW = $.0761/kWh. • Greater than 1 MW = $.0494/kWh. Adjustment based upon the previous five year’s average avoided costs. • 2026 adjustment = 2021-2025. • 2029 adjustment = 2024-2028. 2021 Avoided Cost Components 2023 2022 ERCOT Energy $ 0.0467 $ 0.1005 $ 0.0940 $ 0.0267 $ 0.0273 $ 0.0310 TCOS Savings Ancillary Services $ 0.0027 $ 0.0050 $ 0.0034 $ 0.0761 $ 0.1327 $ 0.1284 Total <1MW $ 0.0494 $ 0.1054 $ 0.0974 Total >1MW 2024 ? ? ? ? ? 2025 ? ? ? ? ? 2026 Trend $ 0.0804 $ 0.0283 $ 0.0037 ? ? 6 Timelines Program Pre-Launch October 15 Pre-launch Stakeholder Meeting Review program guidelines and requirements Review application, permitting and inspection processes Begin registration as a Solar Standard Offer Participating Contractor Applications accepted via web-based tool Upon application approval, projects may begin construction Interconnection February 3 Begin setting meters for projects passing final inspection Permission to operate comes with setting the meter Accounts activated 7 ©Austin Energy. All rights reserved. Austin Energy and the Austin Energy logo and combinations thereof are trademarks of Austin Energy, the electric department of the City of Austin, Texas. Other names are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.