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(including supply, transmission, distribution, surcharges, and taxes), or the
incremental amount per kilowatt-hour paid for these resources in 2011. These limits
are used, in conjunction with updated load forecasts from the utilities, to calculate a
renewable resource budget in total dollars for each renewable resource procurement
conducted by the IPA. While the cost-effectiveness spending caps have not limited
purchases for the 2009-2011 period, two factors may cause limits on available
spending budgets to constrain future purchases. These include dramatic reductions
in utility load-serving obligations due to municipal aggregation and the inclusion of
solar photovoltaic (PV) RECs, which are significantly more expensive than wind. It
is possible that Alternate Compliance Payments made by alternate suppliers may be
used to assist in mitigating load migration risk. This will be examined in the 2013
Procurement Plan. The impacts of PV REC purchases on the cost-effectiveness
calculations will also be closely monitored.
Distributed Generation Requirement: A Distributed Generation component is
mandated for deliveries beginning June 1, 2013, meaning that of the renewable
energy resources procured pursuant to the RPS, at least the following percentages
shall come from distributed renewable energy generation devices: 0.5% by June 1,
2013, 0.75% by June 1, 2014, and 1% by June 1, 2015 and thereafter.15 The law
defines distributed generation as a device that is powered by a renewable resource,
connected at the distribution system level of an electric utility, ARES, municipal
utility or rural electric cooperative, located on the customer side of the customer’s
meter, used primarily to offset that customer’s electricity load and limited in
nameplate capacity to no more than 2,000 kilowatts. The new standard also requires
that, to the extent available, half of the renewable energy resources procured from
distributed renewable energy generation shall come from devices of less than 25
kilowatts in nameplate capacity. Renewable energy resources procured from
distributed generation devices may also count towards the required percentages for
wind and solar PV. Procurement of renewable energy resources from distributed
renewable energy generation devices shall be done on an annual basis through
multi-year contracts of no less than 5 years, and shall consist solely of RECs. The
IPA has begun a workshop process to assist with defining the Distributed
Generation procurement to be included in its proposed 2013 Procurement Plan.
Eligible Retail Customers, that is, those customers for whom the IPA directs
procurement of energy supply, are defined as retail customers that purchase power and
energy from the utility under fixed price bundled service tariffs excluding:
Customer classes whose service is declared or deemed competitive under Section 113
of the PUA;
Self-generating customers;
15 20 ILCS 3855/1-56.
