Assignment of Proceeding

President Michael R. Peevey is the Assigned Commissioner and Dorothy Duda is the assigned ALJ in this matter.

Findings of Fact

1. In D.06-01-024, the Commission reduced the maximum size of solar facilities eligible to receive incentive payments under the SGIP and the CSI programs to 100% of historic peak load.

2. The solar system size limit adopted in D.06-01-024 restricts the ability of some 2006 SGIP project applicants to size their systems to offset their annual energy use through net metering.

Conclusions of Law

1. If solar facilities are sized based on 100% of annual historical usage, this sizing criterion allows customers to maximize the proportion of their power requirements met by solar facilities, reflects the sites' actual usage, and still prevents potential over-sizing of systems.

2. System size eligibility requirements for solar facilities should be modified from 100% of peak load to 100% of annual historical usage, based on the previous 12 months customer usage.

3. The new size requirement should apply to all 2006 SGIP solar applicants as well as future SGIP solar and CSI projects. The program administrators should allow 2006 SGIP solar applicants to amend their applications to meet this modified sizing requirement.

4. The program administrators should continue to process applications involving future load growth in the manner described in the current SGIP program handbook.

5. Projects that wish to amend their applications and resize based on the new sizing requirements should not face a lower incentive level.

6. The order of original application timing should determine access to incentive funds, and not the date of amendment within the allowed 30-day amendment period.

ORDER

IT IS ORDERED that:

1. Decision 06-01-024 is modified to change the maximum solar system size eligible for incentives under the Commission's Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) and California Solar Initiative (CSI) from 100% of historical peak load to 100% of historical annual usage, based on customer usage data from the previous 12 months.

2. The new system sizing requirements shall apply to all 2006 SGIP solar applicants as well as future SGIP solar and CSI projects.

3. Applications involving future load growth shall be processed in the manner described in the current SGIP program handbook.

4. Within five days from the date of this order, Program Administrators (PAs) shall send a letter to SGIP solar applicants with conditional reservations advising them they have 30 days from the date of the letter to file amended applications to increase their system size. PAs may refrain from processing new applications during the 30-day amendment period.

5. PAs shall manage incentive funds, within this 30-day period, based on the order of the original filing date of incentive applications (i.e., the order in which original applications were entered into the system), on a first-come, first-served basis.

This order is effective today.

Dated July 20, 2006, at San Francisco, California.

Previous PageTop Of PageGo To First Page