Wind investors look for energy policies that indicate a progressive and supportive regulatory environment.
Kansas currently has none of the following policy mandates in place.
Renewable Energy Standards (RES)
An RES sets a goal for a state to get a certain percentage of its electricity from renewable sources by a certain date. For example, Colorado’s RES mandates that investor-owned utilities must get 20% of electricity production from renewables by 2020.
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RES policies vary widely by state (there have also been proposals for a federal standard).
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Some give credit for utilities meeting energy efficiency goals.
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Others offer set-asides or incentives for in-state community wind, solar, etc.
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Some RES policies exempt rural electric cooperatives and municipal utilities from meeting RES requirements if they fulfill other green targets. Others define eligibility according to numbers served.
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Some include net metering policies, green pricing, Renewable Energy Credits (RECs), etc.
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Kansas does have a voluntary agreement between Governor Sebelius and investor-owned utilities for 20% of nameplate production to come from renewables by 2020.
Green Pricing
A voluntary program where customers choose to pay extra on their electric bill to get a portion (or all) of their power from renewable sources. The utility certifies to a regulatory authority (like the Kansas Corporation Commission) that it has generated enough renewable energy to match its customers’ green purchases.
Renewable Energy Credits (RECs)
Utilities that do not have enough renewable production to meet their customers’ green pricing demands or the state requirements for an RES can purchase Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) instead.
RECs are sold by utilities with extra renewable production. They verify that a certain amount of electricity was produced from renewable resources.
Fair Net Metering
Net metering is an incentive for customers (homes, farms, schools, businesses, etc.) to generate their own sources of renewable energy while tied to the grid – a concept known as distributed generation.
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Net metering allows electricity to flow both ways through the meter. When the customer-generator’s generation exceeds their use, the electricity flows back onto the grid. The utility credits this production. Thus the customer can offset the electricity that they purchase from the utility at other times.
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45 states have net metering policies. Kansas does not.
- The federal government requires that utilities allow customers to connect to the grid, but it does not offer them fair access for that interconnection - ie, it does not protect them from heavy connection burdens (long applications and waiting periods, extra fees, redundant safety requirements, etc.).
- Nor are customer-generators assured of a fair price for their electricity. By far, not every net metering policy represents a fair net metering policy.
- "True net metering" is an actual policy term that means retail reimbursement.
- According to EERE, “By definition, true net metering calls for the utility to purchase power at the retail rate and use one meter. States have adopted a number of variations on this theme.”
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