BC Advisory Council Endorses Feed-in Tariff for Renewables

An advisory council to British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell has issued a report suggesting that the province adopt feed-in tariffs (FITs) to generate growth in new sources of renewable energy. The report suggests that the province should adopt:

“Legislation that governs the energy system mandates that higher rates be paid for power supplied by deploying emerging technologies. This guaranteed rate allows for the development of the project. As the technology becomes more viable, the incentive rates are lowered until over time that particular technology becomes commercially competitive."

FITs have had a tremendous impact on growing renewable energy production throughout Europe, but in Germany especially. The German Renewable Energy Sources Act introduced in 2004 mandated such a system. High electricity rates coupled with guaranteed purchase agreements have contributed to the explosion of micro-scale wind and solar energy in Germany. According to the report:

“Appropriate feed-in tariffs can be a powerful stimulus to the industry. Of all the different measures used to encourage development, tariffs have been the most successful at developing renewables markets and domestic industries, and achieving the associated social, economic, environmental, and security benefits."

Presently, the only hope for a FIT-type policy mechanism is in the Michigan state legislature, where such a bill has been proposed. As it currently stands, legislatures in the U.S. have clearly favored renewables portfolio standards (RPS) as the policy mechanism of choice. I believe the RPS is a step in the right direction, but the exclusions for municipalities and electric co-ops make it so that a goal of 15-20% renewable energy only applies to about 60% of the electricity purchasing public. But these mandatory quotas are creating a stable arena for large-scale utilities to continue to dominate energy production and transmission.

For more on feed-in tariffs and renewable energy policy in Canada, the U.S., and Europe, visit Paul Gipe's Wind-Works page.

Photo Credit: Paul Gipe

Michigan Bill Proposes First U.S. Renewable Energy Feed-in Law

State Representative Kathleen Law(D) of Michigan's 23rd district has introduced House Bill 5218 (the Michigan Renewable Energy Sources Act), which is the first comprehensive renewable energy "feed-in tariff" (FIT) introduced in any American legislature. By fixing a guaranteed price for small-scale electricity generation, the proposed legislation would help build the distributive infrastructure needed for dispersed electricity generation by "non-traditional" energy providers; in other words, FITs allow individual homeowners, farmers, electric cooperatives, businesses, and other associations sell to the energy grid for a potentially healthy profit.

As proposed, the tariffs rates proposed in the bill are on par with similar feed-in rate structures that I have alluded to in this blog before. The aggressive rate structure in Germany's Renewable Energy Sources Act has produced well documented growth in aggregate-level and micro-level generation of renewable energy. It has even been suggested that the proposed fee schedule would be the most aggressive and comprehensive tariff schedule in North America, surpassing Ontario's Standard Offer Program (For further reading, I highly recommend Paul Gipe's Wind-Works, a sort of cyber-clearinghouse for feed-in laws, renewable energy, everything you could want to know about wind and decentralizing the grid with renewable energy). The proposed legislation, if passed, would be more comprehensive in breadth (in terms of the greater diversity in renewable energy sources included), as well as depth (in terms of the newfound deep pockets in the pants of the small-scale electricity providers).

This legislation is a move that will most certainly invigorate small-scale renewable energy production in Michigan. However, I also see that it while it is diverse enough to include a fee schedule for a broad array of potential sources, it particularly favors some sources over others (i.e. mandating much higher rates per kWh for solar compared to other sources.)

Summary of Proposed HB 5218 Tariff Rates:

Hydro less than 500 kW..........................$0.10 kWh
Biogas less than 150 kW.........................$0.145 kWh
Geothermal less than 5 MW....................$0.19 kWh
Wind.........................................................$0.105 kWh
Small wind................................................$0.25 kWh
Rooftop solar less than 30 kW................$0.65 kWh
Solar façade cladding less than 30 kW...$0.71 kWh

I am witholding too much judgment on this particular bill as of yet, but I applaud its creativity and will be following it as it progresses through the legislative process.

Canadian Parties Compete for Greens in Ontario

The major political parties in Canada have all accepted the science of climate change and are now rolling out their green plans in an effort to gain political support from environmentalists. This is unlike the situation in the U.S., where the two major parties seem to accept the science but continue to do little more than offer lip service and rhetoric. Is this another sign of the U.S. lagging behind in terms of environmental initiative?

read more | digg story