The Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority (CEFIA) is going to be offering a residential solar incentive program which aims to build at least 30 megawatts of solar by 2023. A third of their funds, which is $10 million dollars a year, will now be used toward this new program. CEFIA can structure this incentive in two ways, as an upfront rebate or as performance-based incentives. As funding diminishes over time, so must the incentives and CEFIA plans to keep us updated on the status of their budget via their website.
Taking effect on January 1, 2012 the electric utilities must solicit 15 year contracts with developers for zero-emission Class I renewable energy credits for non-emitting Class I renewable energy technologies such as wind, solar, and micro-hydropower. The budget for this program starts at $8 million per year and will go up to $48 million a year by 2018. These projects must be customer-sited and less than 1 megawatt in size. This project will make it possible for municipalities to install far more solar power than ever before on town buildings and schools, and will be benefit those interested in powering town facilities with wind.
A reform has also been made to the CT Energy Efficiency Fund. The electric and natural gas utilities have been removed as voting members of the Efficiency Fund board, although they are still kept as paid program administrators. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s commissioner/designee is now the chair of the Efficiency Fund’s board. This change in the CT Energy Efficiency Fund board will allow the fund to be more transparent and responsive to outside input.
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