There”™s money to be made on tar beach.
Thanks to an agreement to expand the so-called net metering law to include businesses and non-residential buildings, the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker can get in the electricity business.
The law opens opportunities for renewable energy initiatives to expand statewide, with solar and wind power “mini-power plants” now legally authorized to return excess power to the grid not only from private homes and farms but from commercial buildings, as well. The state”™s energy utilities are obligated to accept a percentage of this energy from such sources.
The increased capacity for net metering comes at a time when banks and other financial institutions are creating an economic infrastructure suitable to a new paradigm in energy and efficiency. The emerging emphasis on financing “smart” energy policy was clear even before agreement was reached by Gov. David Paterson and state legislators on the net metering provision.
The bill expanding the state”™s net metering law is expected to lead to greater investment by businesses in facilities that generate energy from clean renewable sources. By increasing market demand for renewable technologies, the bill will also ideally attract renewable energy manufacturers and installers to New York state.
The bill would require electric companies to develop contracts with consumers to issue them credit toward their utility bills for the electricity they produce. The bill expands a residential consumer”™s energy allowance from 10 kilowatts (or 10,000 watts) to 25 kilowatts and creates a cap of either 2 megawatts or up to the peak load usage for a business, whichever is lower. By way of comparison, an ordinary home today typically is consuming about 5 or 6 kilowatts at any given time, although that amount can spike sharply depending on what appliances are in use. For example, a potable hairdryer alone uses 1500 watts (1.5 kw) while in operation
John Miserjian, a spokesperson for Central Hudson, the major supplier to the Hudson Valley, said the energy service company welcomes the new protocols on net metering. He noted the Central Hudson territory was the most heavily subscribed service area for residents signing up for the existing net metering regimen and said the company had worked with state officials in designing the upgraded program. Miserjian said it would take approximately six months to rework the tariffs associated with the net metering program so the new regimen could take effect early next year.
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The net metering bill expands wind power initiatives, allowing such power to be returned to the grid from facilities other than that residential and farm applications that had previously been allowed to do so.
The Energy Smart programs that are already in place may be even more in demand with the net metering initiatives expanded into new arenas. The programs provide loans for efficiency in new construction and retrofitting existing structures and can provide energy audits to help businesses to best target their investment.
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