FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Colleen Kettles
Tina Nickerson
POWER FOR THE PEOPLE:
FLORIDA'S PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION GIVES
CONSUMERS A NEW WAY TO CONTROL UTILITY COSTS
TALLAHASSEE, FL, January 22nd - The Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC)
has adopted a rule to make it easier for utility customers to connect small solar electric
(photovoltaic, or PV) systems to the electric power grid. Now home or business owners
who install these "green power" systems will pay less and benefit more. For many who
install these systems, the choice is an opportunity to visibly demonstrate their
commitment to America=s national security.
The FPSC rule - which takes effect February 11 - establishes standards for the
agreements between the utility and its customers who want to install PV systems and
connect them directly to the utility power grid. "We believe that the adoption of this new
rule will make it easier for customers who want to pursue solar PV to interconnect their
systems," remarked FPSC Chairman Lila Jaber. "We hope this will spur deployment of
more PV systems across the Sunshine State," she added. This new rule applies to all of
the state=s investor owned utilities (IOUs) which presently service 77% of Florida=s
customers.
The PSC rule allows IOUs to choose between one of two metering options in their
interconnection agreement. The single meter option is the simplest to install and allows
customers to "net meter" with the utility. With this option, the meter runs backwards
when the PV system generates more electricity than is being used in the home or
business. Option two permits the utility to add a second meter to separately measure
the power fed from the solar system back to the utility grid.
"Net metering is considered a better value for the consumer, since the excess
power they produce offsets any utility power they might have used. In a two-meter
situation, the utility measures the power it has sold the consumer and charges them the
established retail rate. Any excess PV power produced is purchased by the utility at a
reduced rate, in line with their cogeneration tariffs, which are based on a wholesale
power model," said Colleen Kettles, Florida Solar Energy Industries Association
(FlaSEIA) Executive Director.
FlaSEIA participated in the rule-making process, and worked in a "spirit of
cooperation" with the FPSC staff as well as the regulated utilities. "After months of
workshops and hearings, all parties achieved a consensus on the rule as adopted," said
Kettles. "We are encouraged by the flexibility that the proposed rule has given utilities
to address the interconnection of PV systems, while establishing a uniform process."
"This interconnection standard could not come at a better time," said Peter
DeNapoli, FlaSEIA President and Senior Manager with Siemens Solar in Boca Raton.
"Recent events have focused a great deal of attention on our need to conserve and
diversify our energy resources, not merely for the sake of energy efficiency but for the
sake of national security. As our central station power plants and natural gas pipelines
operate under this heightened security, distributed solar energy systems will be a
prudent and necessary resource, one that will benefit not only the system owner, but
also the utility and its customers," said DeNapoli.
Though the new rule applies only to Florida IOUs, several municipal utilities and
utility cooperatives have already established similar interconnection procedures.
Utilities will have until March 13 to file their interconnection agreement with the
Commission for final approval. PSC staff estimates that the agreements can be
reviewed, approved, and take effect within 30 days of these filings.
The technical buzz about photovoltaics.
Most of us familiar with solar electricity (PV) initially became aware of it through
photographs of solar powered satellites and NASA spacecraft. The technology works,
quite simply, by turning sunlight into electricity. Sunlight is comprised of tiny energy
packets called photons. Every minute, enough of it reaches the earth to meet the entire
world's energy demand for a whole year. Individual solar cells are made-up of a
material like silicon, the most common element on earth. They are designed with a
positive and negative layer to create an electric field - just like in a battery. As photons
of sunlight strike and are absorbed by a solar cell, the photon energy causes electrons
in the cell to become free. These free electrons move toward the bottom of the cell,
exiting through a connecting wire. This free flow of electrons is electricity. How much
electricity is created, depends on the number of solar cells used. When connected,
many individual cells create a photovoltaic panel and many panels create a solar array.
The more cells and panels connected in an array, the more electricity it produces.
About FlaSEIA.
The Florida Solar Energy Industries Association (FlaSEIA) represents businesses
engaged in the manufacture, distribution, contracting and installation of solar energy
systems in Florida. Established in 1976, FlaSEIA is located in Longwood, Florida. For
further information, call 800-59SOLAR, or visit www.flaseia.org where we have the full
text of the rule.
About Siemens Solar.
Siemens Solar Industries L.P., is headquartered in Camarillo, California. Siemens
Solar is one of the world=s leading manufacturers of photovoltaic cells, modules and
systems. For additional information visit www.siemenssolar.com. For sales
information, contact: ssi.sales@solar.siemens.com.