PUC staff urges no expedited order to continue net metering program
CARSON CITY — Legal staff with the Nevada Public Utilities Commission is recommending that commissioners do not issue an expedited order Wednesday to continue an existing net metering program as requested by rooftop solar officials to ensure their fledgling industry does not grind to a halt.
Instead, the memo recommends that the commission roll the request from the rooftop-solar industry into the new rate proposal for net metering customers filed by NV Energy on July 31.
The commission should also set the matter for further proceedings to determine whether an interim tariff is needed prior to the creation of the new permanent rate for net metering customers as mandated by the Nevada Legislature, the memo says.
The Alliance for Solar Choice, or TASC, filed an emergency petition last month seeking to continue the existing program even if a cap of 235 megawatts of net metering is reached as early as next month. The concern is that without a continuation of the existing program, the rooftop-solar industry will grind to a halt and result in the loss of 6,000 jobs.
The petition will be discussed Wednesday at the PUC meeting.
“Staff recognizes that the timing for reaching the 235-MW cap is a significant issue that may require commission action on an expedited basis,” the legal briefing says.
The PUC has until Dec. 31 to devise a new rate for net metering customers, who receive a credit for excess energy produced by their rooftop-solar installations. A pre-hearing conference on the proposed net metering rate is scheduled for Aug. 19.
Bryan Miller, an executive with the rooftop-solar firm Sunrun Inc. and a member of TASC, has criticized the new tariff proposed by NV Energy, doing business in Southern Nevada as Nevada Power, calling it “the most extreme anti-solar proposal anywhere in the country.”
NV Energy has asked the PUC to adopt the new rate class for rooftop-solar customers by Sept. 15.
Kevin Geraghty, vice president of generation for NV Energy, said when the proposal was filed that the new rate structure will create “a long-term sustainable future,” for the rooftop-solar industry.
The new net metering rate would provide a credit of 5.5 cents per kilowatt hour to residential rooftop-solar generators instead of the current 11.6 cents. NV Energy says the new rate ensures there will be no subsidy paid to rooftop-solar customers by other ratepayers.
But Miller said the proposal, if adopted as submitted by NV Energy, will end rooftop solar in Nevada.
Miller said a major concern with the proposal is a recommendation for a “demand” charge that NV Energy says is meant to cover the cost of infrastructure and new generation capacity that all of its customers rely upon to ensure an uninterrupted power supply even at peak demand times. Miller said the proposed charge is confusing and rooftop solar customers won’t know what their power bills will be under the proposal.
Contact Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900. Find him on Twitter: @seanw801.
