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D.C. Municipal Regulations (Last Updated: September 13, 2017) |
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Title 15. PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CABLE TELEVISION |
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Chapter 15-29. RENEWABLE ENERGY PORTFOLIO STANDARD |
Section 15-2902. GENERATOR CERTIFICATION AND ELIGIBILITY
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2902.1Renewable generators, including behind-the-meter (BTM) generators, must be certified as a qualified resource by the Commission. The Commission shall not certify any Tier One solar energy system larger than fifteen megawatts (15 MW) in capacity – except for solar energy systems larger than fifteen megawatts (15 MW) in capacity that are located on property owned by the Government of the District of Columbia or by any agency or independent authority of the Government of the District of Columbia – located within the District of Columbia or in locations served by a distribution feeder serving the District of Columbia. In addition, solar energy systems that are not located within the District of Columbia or in locations served by a distribution feeder serving the District of Columbia, regardless of capacity may be certified as a qualified resource to meet the non-solar portion of the Tier One renewable source requirement of the renewable energy portfolio standard.
2902.2Renewable electricity generators, including BTM generators, may be certified as a Tier One or Tier Two resource. In order to be certified, applicants must:
(a)Complete the Commission's "Application for Certification as an Eligible District of Columbia Renewable Energy Standards Generating Facility" (Regular Application); or
(b)Complete the Commission's "Streamlined Application for Certification as an Eligible District of Columbia Renewable Energy Standards Generating Facility" (Streamlined Application) in cases where the applicant has already been certified as a renewable energy resource by another PJM state and the Commission determines certification to be comparable to the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards requirements in the District of Columbia. The applicant should refer to the Tier One and Tier Two eligibility matrices available on the Commission's website to determine if the Streamlined Application can be submitted.
2902.3The following states are deemed to be within the PJM Interconnection Region as of October 2011: Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
2902.4The Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS) Working Group shall identify any new renewable energy resource that has been certified by another PJM state that is eligible for participation in the District of Columbia's RPS. This information shall be included in the filing of the annual update to the Tier One and Tier Two eligibility matrices to be submitted by February 1 of each calendar year.
2902.5An applicant submitting a Regular Application or a Streamlined Application for certification as a renewable resource shall state, at a minimum:
(a)The name of the Renewable Energy Facility for which the application is made and its address;
(b)The name of the owner of the facility and the owner's contact information;
(c)The name of the operator of the facility and the operator's contact information;
(d)The name of a contact person and the person's contact information;
(e)The location of the resource;
(f)The renewable fuel type(s) and capacity information;
(g)The commercial operation start date (or date of approved interconnection with the Potomac Electric Power Company (PEPCO));
(h)Whether the facility is a "behind-the-meter" generator;
(i)Whether the facility is certified by another state as an eligible generation resource to meet the portfolio standards of that state; and
(j)The Office of Regulatory Information Systems Plant Location (ORISPL) Code for the facility.
2902.6In addition to the information required in § 2902.5, an applicant submitting a Regular Application must also attach:
(a)A current Certificate of Good Standing for the applicant issued by the state in which the business was formed;
(b)A copy of the U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration Form EIA 860, if the rated capacity is greater than one megawatt (1 MW);
(c)A Certificate of Authorization to Conduct Business in the District of Columbia, if applicable;
(d)An Affidavit of General Compliance;
(e)Documentation of authority to sign on behalf of the Applicant;
(f)An Affidavit of Environmental Compliance, if the fuel type is not solar energy;
(g)Documentation that the energy output of the non-residential solar heating, cooling, or process heat property systems producing or displacing greater than ten thousand kilowatt hours (10,000 kWh) per year is determined by an on-site energy meter that meets performance standards established by the International Organization of Legal Metrology (OIML) and the solar collectors used have a OG-100 certification from the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation (SRCC), if applicable;
(h) Documentation that the energy output of the non-residential solar heating, cooling, or process heat property systems producing or displacing ten thousand (10,000) or less kilowatt-hours per year is determined by the SRCC OG-300 annual system performance rating protocol applicable to the property or by an on-site energy meter that meets performance standards established by OIML and the solar collectors used have a OG-100 certification from the SRCC, if applicable;
(i) Documentation that the residential solar thermal system energy output is determined by the SRCC OG-300 annual rating protocol or by an on-site energy meter that meets performance standards established by OIML and the solar collectors used have a OG-100 certification from the SRCC, if applicable; and
(j)Interconnection Approval Letter from the PEPCO for the solar energy system, if applicable.
2902.7In addition to the information required in § 2902.5, an applicant submitting a Streamlined Application must also attach:
(a) An Affidavit of General Compliance;
(b)An Affidavit of Environmental Compliance, if the fuel type is not solar energy;
(c)Documentation of authority to sign on behalf of the Applicant;
(d) Documentation that the energy output of the non-residential solar heating, cooling, or process heat property systems producing or displacing greater than ten thousand kilowatt hours (10,000 kWh) per year is determined by an on-site energy meter that meets performance standards established by the OIML and the solar collectors used have a OG-100 certification from the SRCC, if applicable;
(e) Documentation that the energy output of the non-residential solar heating, cooling, or process heat property systems producing or displacing ten thousand (10,000) or less kilowatt-hours per year is determined by the SRCC OG-300 annual system performance rating protocol applicable to the property or by an on-site energy meter that meets performance standards established by OIML and the solar collectors used have a OG-100 certification from the SRCC, if applicable;
(f) Documentation that the residential solar thermal system energy output is determined by the SRCC OG-300 annual rating protocol or by an on-site energy meter that meets performance standards established by OIML and the solar collectors used have a OG-100 certification from the SRCC, if applicable; and
(g) Interconnection Approval Letter from PEPCO for the solar energy system, if applicable.
2902.8A Regular or Streamlined Application may be submitted at any time on the Commission-approved application forms. All application forms are available from the Office of the Commission Secretary or the Commission's website at www.dcpsc.org/applications/applications.asp.
2902.9The Commission shall issue a decision on the Regular Application forms within thirty (30) business days of filing. The generation resource shall be considered certified if the Commission has not acted within the thirty (30) business-day period, except where the Commission or its staff has issued a request for further information that is still outstanding.
2902.10The Commission shall issue a decision on the Streamlined Application forms within fifteen (15) business days of filing. The generation resource shall be considered certified if the Commission has not acted within the fifteen (15) business-day period, except where the Commission or its staff has issued a request for further information that is still outstanding.
2902.11In cases where the Commission or its staff determines that a Regular Application is insufficient or incomplete, the Commission or its staff will send a written request for additional information within fifteen (15) business days of the date of the filing of the application. In such cases, the applicant shall have fifteen (15) days to submit the additional information.
2902.12In cases where the Commission or its staff determines that a Streamlined Application is insufficient or incomplete, the Commission or its staff will send a written request for additional information within ten business (10) days of the date of the filing of the application. In such cases, the applicant shall have fifteen (15) days to submit the additional information.
2902.13A request for additional information from the Commission or its staff shall toll the deadline in these rules for issuing a decision on the applicant's Regular or Streamlined Application.
2902.14Upon receipt of the additional information from the applicant or its authorized representative, the Commission shall issue a decision on the application in accordance with the time periods prescribed in § 2902.9 for Regular Applications and § 2902.10 for Streamlined Applications.
2902.15Upon approval of an application, the Commission shall assign a unique GATS certificate number to the eligible renewable energy generating resource. The Commission should be notified of any planned substantive changes in the operating characteristics of a certified generating facility at least thirty (30) days prior to the effective date of such changes. Substantive changes include, but are not limited to, changes in fuel type, fuel mix, and generator type. A revised application should be submitted for Commission review, subject to the time periods prescribed in § 2902.9 for Regular Applications and § 2902.10 for Streamlined Applications. In addition, applicants and District-certified generating facilities shall notify the Commission of any substantive changes in information provided in an original or amended application within thirty (30) days. If a system is already certified, the changes to the system or facility shall be deemed approved unless the Commission requests additional information within fifteen (15) business days. If a request for additional information is issued for a system that is already certified, the changes to the system or facility shall be deemed approved within fifteen (15) business days after a response is received, unless further information is requested.
2902.16A Renewable electricity generator may be decertified by the Commission if it is determined to no longer be an eligible renewable resource due to fraud or a material change in the nature of the resource. Before being decertified, a renewable electricity generator will be given thirty (30) days' written notice and an opportunity to show cause why it should not be decertified.
2902.17Any generating facility that is decertified due to fraud may not create any District of Columbia RECs for a three (3)-year period and may not retroactively create RECs for that same three (3)-year period.
2902.18Any subsequent unrelated owner of the decertified renewable electricity generator, pursuant to § 2902.16 above, is not subject to the three (3)-year exclusion beginning with its effective date of ownership.
2902.19RECs created prior to decertification of the generating facility by the Commission, pursuant to § 2902.16 above, shall be eligible to be used for Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard compliance purposes, subject to the restrictions identified in § 2903.2.
2902.20After December 31, 2012, a facility that uses the incineration of solid waste shall not be eligible to generate RECs for the District of Columbia’s RPS program.
2902.21After December 31, 2019, a facility certified as a Tier Two renewable resource shall not be eligible to generate RECs for the District of Columbia’s RPS program.
2902.22Every facility using qualifying biomass to generate electricity and certified as a qualifying resource by the Commission shall submit annually by June 1, starting in 2016, information demonstrating each system’s total system efficiency for the current calendar year consistent with the definitions of “total system efficiency,” “fuel input,” and “useful thermal energy output” in Subsection 2999.1.