Procurement of Tier 1 RECs

NY-ADR

8/12/20 N.Y. St. Reg. PSC-32-20-00010-P
NEW YORK STATE REGISTER
VOLUME XLII, ISSUE 32
August 12, 2020
RULE MAKING ACTIVITIES
PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
PROPOSED RULE MAKING
NO HEARING(S) SCHEDULED
 
I.D No. PSC-32-20-00010-P
Procurement of Tier 1 RECs
PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE State Administrative Procedure Act, NOTICE is hereby given of the following proposed rule:
Proposed Action:
The Commission is considering the Petition filed by NYSERDA proposing that generators with fixed-price REC contracts entered into under the CES be permitted to transition to index-price REC contracts, subject to appropriate rules.
Statutory authority:
Public Service Law, sections 4(1), 5(1), (2), 66(2), 66-p; Energy Law, section 6-104(5)(b)
Subject:
Procurement of Tier 1 RECs.
Purpose:
Management of renewable energy procurements to meet state goals and benefit ratepayers.
Substance of proposed rule:
The Public Service Commission is considering a Petition filed by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) related to contracts for Tier 1 Renewable Energy Credits (RECs). The Petition explains that initial procurements for Clean Energy Standard (CES) Tier 1 RECs were conducted using a fixed-price model, while more recent procurements are being conducted using the addition of an index-price model, pursuant to the Commission’s January 16, 2020 Order Modifying Tier 1 Renewable Energy Products. The Petition thus proposes to allow projects that hold fixed-price Tier 1 REC contracts and have not yet achieved commercial operation to convert that contract to an index-priced REC contract, subject to cost-containment and other appropriate controls, while retaining many of the non-price related contract provisions applicable to the project. The Petition asserts that an index-priced REC contract would provide more certainty to developers currently holding fixed-price REC contracts which, in turn, would allow the developers to hedge against market volatility and obtain lower cost financing. NYSERDA expects that ratepayers will realize material savings as a result of these benefits and that overall project viability will also increase, yielding projects that are more likely to be constructed and deliver to New York under the NYSERDA contract.
The full text of the Petition and the full record of the proceeding may be reviewed online at the Department of Public Service web page: www.dps.ny.gov. The Commission may adopt, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the action proposed and may resolve related matters.
Text of proposed rule and any required statements and analyses may be obtained by filing a Document Request Form (F-96) located on our website http://www.dps.ny.gov/f96dir.htm. For questions, contact:
John Pitucci, Public Service Commission, 3 Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350, (518) 486-2655, email: [email protected]
Data, views or arguments may be submitted to:
Michelle Phillips, Secretary, Public Service Commission, 3 Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350, (518) 474-6530, email: [email protected]
Public comment will be received until:
60 days after publication of this notice.
Regulatory Impact Statement, Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, Rural Area Flexibility Analysis and Job Impact Statement
Statements and analyses are not submitted with this notice because the proposed rule is within the definition contained in section 102(2)(a)(ii) of the State Administrative Procedure Act.
(15-E-0302SP45)
End of Document