New York state has approved a new community
\ninitiative enabling millions of New Yorkers
\nto access clean and affordable energy for the
\nfirst time.<\/p>\n
Shared Renewables provides opportunities
\nfor businesses, homeowners, low-income residents,
\nrenters and schools to join together to set
\nup shared renewable energy projects resulting in
\nhealthier and stronger communities.<\/p>\n
“The Shared Renewables initiative will help
\npeople and communities across the state save
\nmoney on local clean energy projects,” Gov.
\nAndrew Cuomo said. “This program is about
\nprotecting the environment and ensuring that
\nall New Yorkers, regardless of their zip code or
\nincome, have the opportunity to access clean
\nand affordable power. Together, we will build a
\ncleaner and greener New York.”<\/p>\n
State officials said renewable resources
\nare already providing massive economic and
\nenvironmental benefits across the state, with installed
\nsolar capacity having grown 300 percent
\nbetween 2011 and 2014. Yet, many New Yorkers
\nare still unable to participate because they rent
\ntheir home, live in an apartment building, or own
\nproperties unsuitable for installing solar panels
\nor other clean energy technologies.<\/p>\n
Under the Shared Renewables initiative (also
\nreferred to as community distributed generation),
\ncustomers can join together to share in
\nthe benefits of local solar, wind, and other renewable
\nenergy projects. Each individual member’s
\nproduction would appear as a credit on their
\nmonthly utility bill.<\/p>\n
The first phase of Shared Renewables will
\nfocus on promoting low-income customer
\nparticipation and installations in areas of the
\npower grid that can benefit most from local
\npower production.<\/p>\n
“Democratizing the production of power
\nallows individuals and communities to take
\ncontrol of their energy future and realize the
\neconomic, social, and environmental benefits of
\nsolar and other renewable resources,” said Richard
\nKauffman, chairman of energy and finance
\nfor New York. “New York state is once again at
\nthe forefront of progressive energy policy by
\nempowering millions of our residents, schools,
\nand businesses to choose renewable power for
\nthe first time.”<\/p>\n
The REV initiative takes a proactive approach
\nto meet the challenges facing today’s power
\nsector by building a regulatory framework to
\nmodernize the utility industry to create greater
\nvalue for customers and support new investment
\nin clean energy.<\/p>\n
Public Service Commission Chairwoman Audrey
\nZibelman said Shared Renewables expands
\nconsumer access to reliable, low-cost electricity
\ngenerated from renewable energy facilities. It
\nplaces customers who do not own homes on
\nan equal footing with traditional single-home
\ncustomers and creates opportunities for low and
\nmoderate-income families who don’t have
\naccess to electricity generated from renewable resources.<\/p>\n
Officials said during the first phase of Shared
\nRenewables–Oct. 2015 through April 30,
\n2016–projects will be limited to those that
\nadvance one of two specific REV goals: siting
\ndistributed generation in areas where it can
\nprovide the greatest benefits to the larger power
\ngrid, or supporting economically distressed
\ncommunities by ensuring at least 20 percent of
\nthe participants are low- and moderate-income
\ncustomers.<\/p>\n
Beginning May 1, 2016, a second phase will
\nmake shared renewable projects available
\nthroughout entire utility service territories,
\nofficials said.<\/p>\n
In addition, other REV principles can be applied,
\nsuch as aligning utility incentives to fully
\nsupport Shared Renewables projects by allowing
\nshared savings or revenues from new business
\nmodels that facilitate projects at lower costs. In addition to these changes, the Public Service
\nCommission will immediately commence a
\ncollaborative to determine how to continue the
\nencouragement of low-income customer participation
\nin community distributed generation
\nduring the second phase.<\/p>\n
State officials said customers interested in the
\nShared Renewables initiative can participate in
\na number of ways. For instance, the residents of
\na condominium may want to join together for a
\nshared solar project. They would need to find a
\n“sponsor” who will be responsible for organizing
\nthe project on behalf of the residents. A sponsor
\ncould be a developer or even the residents of the
\nbuilding banding together to form a legal entity
\nsuch as a limited liability corporation, or LLC.<\/p>\n
To learn more about participating or to sign
\nup to receive assistance and resources to take
\nadvantage of the program, visit www.ny-sun.ny.gov\/Community-Solar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
New York state has approved a new community initiative enabling millions of New Yorkers to access clean and affordable energy for the first time. Shared Renewables provides opportunities for businesses, homeowners, low-income residents, renters and schools to join together…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[57,102],"class_list":["post-17495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-news","tag-business-news","tag-ny-state"],"yoast_head":"\r\n