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RPS Nevada
(Last updated July 1st, 2004)
RENEWABLE PORTFOLIO STANDARDS-STATE SUMMARY
I. POLICY
II. ADMINISTRATION
III. FINANCING
IV. CRITICAL ELEMENTS
V. POLICY/PROGRAM ASSESSMENT
VI. PUBLIC OUTREACH AND
EDUCATION
I. POLICY
Date Enacted
June 8, 2001
Effective Date
May 31, 2002
Time Period
2003-2013 onward
Extensions to Time Period
not applicable
Applicable Laws, Orders, and Regulations
Nevada Administrative Code
LCB File No. R144-01RA
http://leg.state.nv.us/register/01Register/R144-01FA.html
Nevada Revised Statutes
Portfolio Standard for Renewable Energy
(NRS 704.7801-704.7828)
http://www.leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-704.html#NRS704Sec7801
SB 372 (2001)
http://www.leg.state.nv.us/71st/statutes/Stats200117.html#Stats200117page2526
AB 661 (2001)
http://www.leg.state.nv.us/71st/statutes/Stats200121.html#Stats200121page3222
Description
The legislation requires Nevada’s electric utilities to generate
or acquire a minimum of 5 percent of electricity sold to retail
customers from renewable energy systems in 2003 and 2004, and
increases the standard by 2 percent biennially until it reaches
15 percent in 2013. The 15 percent standard is maintained for
calendar year 2013 and for each calendar year thereafter. In
addition, of the total amount of electricity that the provider
is required to generate or acquire from renewable energy systems
during each calendar year, not less than 5 percent of that amount
must be generated or acquired from solar renewable energy systems.
Program Name
Portfolio Standard for Renewable Energy
Standard
Year
|
% Renewable Generation
|
% Total Generation from Solar
|
2003–2004
|
5%
|
0.25% minimum
|
2005–2006
|
7%
|
0.35% minimum
|
2007–2008
|
9%
|
0.45% minimum
|
2009–2010
|
11%
|
0.55% minimum
|
2011–2012
|
13%
|
0.65% minimum
|
2013–onward
|
15%
|
0.75% minimum
|
Eligibility Date
An eligibility date is not specified in the legislation, thus
both existing and new sources are eligible under the RPS.
Generation Limit
No size limit on eligible generation facilities is included
in the legislation.
Fuels/Technologies
· Biomass
--Any organic matter that is available on a renewable basis,
including, without limitation:
- Agricultural crops and agricultural wastes and residues;
- Wood and wood wastes and residues;
- Animal wastes;
- Muncipal wastes; and
- Aquatic plants.
--Landfill gases
--Wastewater treatment gases
--Industrial digester gases
· Geothermal
energy
· Solar energy
--photovoltaic
--solar thermal electric
--solar thermal energy systems that reduce the consumption
of electricity
· Wind
II. ADMINISTRATION
Administering Entities
Public Utility Commission
Type of Entity
State
Administrative Contacts
Public Utilities Commission of Nevada
1150 East William Street
Carson City, Nevada 89701-3109
(775) 687-6007 Fax (775) 687-6110
http://puc.state.nv.us/
III. FINANCING
Funding Level
none specified
Funding Source
The provider may recover all just and reasonable costs associated
with the renewable energy contract through the rate base.
Cost Cap
none specified
Charge
included in rate base
IV. CRITICAL ELEMENTS
Trading
According to Restructuring Today (8/20/02), the Nevada Public
Utilities Commission (PUC) has begun drafting regulations
for a renewable energy credit trading system. The Commission
is contemplating whether to give more credit for renewable
energy generated in Nevada than for renewables purchased elsewhere.
The PUC expects to have draft rules in place by the end of
September 2002 and will then take comments before adopting
the regulations.
Green Pricing
Renewable energy sold under green pricing programs is not
addressed in legislation.
Certification
The commission may adopt regulations that establish a system
of renewable energy credits that may be used by a provider
to comply with its portfolio standard.
Out-of-State
In-state requirements are not specified by legislation.
Self-generation
Any excess kilowatt-hours fed back to the provider during
the compliance year from net metering systems used by customer-generators
are eligible. If the provider has subsidized, in whole or
in part, the acquisition or installation of a solar thermal
energy system which qualifies as a renewable energy system
and which reduces the consumption of electricity, the total
reduction in the consumption of electricity during each calendar
year that results from the solar thermal energy system shall
be deemed to be electricity that the provider generated or
acquired from a renewable energy system for the purposes of
complying with its portfolio standard.
Flexibility
Details of the credit trading system are not yet available.
Any kilowatt-hours that the provider is authorized by the
PUC to carry forward from previous compliance years are eligible.
The provider may use those excess kilowatt-hours to comply
with its portfolio standard for the 4 compliance years immediately
following that compliance year. If the commission determines
that, for a calendar year, there is not or will not be a sufficient
supply of electricity made available to a provider pursuant
to renewable energy contracts with just and reasonable terms
and conditions, the commission shall exempt the provider,
for that calendar year, from the remaining requirements of
its portfolio standard or from any appropriate portion thereof,
as determined by the commission. <
V. POLICY/PROGRAM ASSESSMENT
Reporting Requirement
Each provider of electric service shall submit to the commission
an annual report that provides information relating to the
actions taken by the provider to comply with its portfolio
standard. Submission of the report must be not later than
April 1 of each compliance year.
While the PUC has not yet detailed its enforcement procedures,
the legislation states that enforcement mechanisms may include,
without limitation, the imposition of administrative fines.
If the commission imposes an administrative fine against a
provider that is a public utility the provider may not recover
any portion of the administrative fine from its retail customers.
Assessing Entity
Public Utilities Commission
Report Date
not yet available
Report Name
You can read about Nevada's program to accelerate the market
for distributed PV systems on our site:
http://www.repp.org/solar/DraftBillOnPVMarketDevelopment.pdf.
Status
The legislation requires Nevada's electric utilities to generate
or acquire a minimum of 5% of electricity sold to retail customers
from renewable enrgy systems in 2003 and 2004 and increases
the standard by 2% biennially until it reaches 15% in 2013.
Cost Information
According to an article in the Las Vegas Review Journal
(March 12, 2003), the average cost for wind energy is 3–4
cents per kW/h and the average cost for geothermal energy is
at 4.2–5.2 cents per kW/h.
Assessment Contact
Public Utilities Commission of Nevada
1150 East William Street
Carson City, Nevada 89701-3109
(775) 687-6007 Fax (775) 687-6110
http://puc.state.nv.us
VI. PUBLIC OUTREACH AND EDUCATION
Outreach/Customer Education
Renewable Energy Resources
http://energy.state.nv.us/renewable/default.htm
Press Release
http://puc.state.nv.us/news/current.htm
Attachments:
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