On Friday, October 2, 2020, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities approved the Year 2 Application form and process for the State’s Community Solar Energy Pilot Program.
The Pilot Program is administered by New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program™ and provides access to solar energy through a subscription-based model that virtually connects customers to a solar installation within their electric utility company’s territory.
The Year 2 Application process incorporates feedback and lessons learned from Year 1 gathered during an ongoing public stakeholder process. Program Year 2 has allotted 150 MW of community solar capacity – double the capacity of Year 1 – and includes a carve-out to ensure at least 40 percent of awarded projects serve low- to moderate-income (LMI) customers. In Year 1, NJBPU
awarded 78 MW to 45 projects, all of which will dedicate at least 51 percent of their capacity to LMI communities.
Year 2 applications are due by February 5, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. ET. Applications must be submitted to a new online application portal, which will be available soon. Staff will provide instructions on how to submit an application via the portal once it is released.
The Year 2 Application Form is available for review
here.
Today’s Application Form was also accompanied by two
proposed rule amendments initiating other improvements to the Pilot Program. The proposals will be open to public comments for 60 days upon publication in the New Jersey Register.
The Board also approved an
Order modifying the LMI verification process for projects granted conditional approval to participate in Year 1 of the Pilot Program.
