The commission shall establish a process for issuance or recognition of a renewable energy certificate.
Terms Used In Utah Code 54-17-603
Commission: means the Public Service Commission. See Utah Code 54-2-1
Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
Corporation: includes an association and a joint stock company having any powers or privileges not possessed by individuals or partnerships. See Utah Code 54-2-1
Independent energy producer: means every electrical corporation, person, corporation, or government entity, their lessees, trustees, or receivers, that own, operate, control, or manage an independent power production or cogeneration facility. See Utah Code 54-2-1
Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
Purchasing utility: means any electrical corporation that is required to purchase electricity from small power production or cogeneration facilities pursuant to the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act, 16 U. See Utah Code 54-2-1
Qualifying electricity: means electricity generated on or after January 1, 1995 from a renewable energy source if:
(a)
(i)
the renewable energy source is located within the geographic boundary of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council; or
(ii)
the qualifying electricity is delivered to the transmission system of an electrical corporation or a delivery point designated by the electrical corporation for the purpose of subsequent delivery to the electrical corporation; and
(b)
the renewable energy attributes of the electricity are not traded, sold, transferred, or otherwise used to satisfy another state's renewable energy program. See Utah Code 54-17-601
an electric generation facility or generation capability or upgrade that becomes operational on or after January 1, 1995 that derives its energy from one or more of the following:
(i)
wind energy;
(ii)
solar photovoltaic and solar thermal energy;
(iii)
wave, tidal, and ocean thermal energy;
(iv)
except for combustion of wood that has been treated with chemical preservatives such as creosote, pentachlorophenol or chromated copper arsenate, biomass and biomass byproducts, including:
(A)
organic waste;
(B)
forest or rangeland woody debris from harvesting or thinning conducted to improve forest or rangeland ecological health and to reduce wildfire risk;
(C)
agricultural residues;
(D)
dedicated energy crops; and
(E)
landfill gas or biogas produced from organic matter, wastewater, anaerobic digesters, or municipal solid waste;
(v)
geothermal energy located outside the state;
(vi)
waste gas and waste heat capture or recovery whether or not it is renewable, including methane gas from:
(A)
an abandoned coal mine; or
(B)
a coal degassing operation associated with a state-approved mine permit;
(vii)
efficiency upgrades to a hydroelectric facility, without regard to the date upon which the facility became operational, if the upgrades become operational on or after January 1, 1995;
(viii)
compressed air, if:
(A)
the compressed air is taken from compressed air energy storage; and
(B)
the energy used to compress the air is a renewable energy source; or
(ix)
municipal solid waste;
(b)
any of the following:
(i)
up to 50 average megawatts of electricity per year per electrical corporation from a certified low-impact hydroelectric facility, without regard to the date upon which the facility becomes operational, if the facility is certified as a low-impact hydroelectric facility on or after January 1, 1995, by a national certification organization;
(ii)
geothermal energy if located within the state, without regard to the date upon which the facility becomes operational; or
(iii)
hydroelectric energy if located within the state, without regard to the date upon which the facility becomes operational;
(c)
hydrogen gas derived from any source of energy described in Subsection (10)(a) or (b);
(d)
if an electric generation facility employs multiple energy sources, that portion of the electricity generated that is attributable to energy sources described in Subsections (10)(a) through (c); and
(e)
any of the following located in the state and owned by a user of energy:
State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
(2)
The commission process under Subsection (1) shall provide for the issuance, monitoring, accounting, transfer, and use of a renewable energy certificate, including in electronic form.
(3)
The commission may:
(a)
consult with another state or a federal agency and any regional system or trading program to fulfill Subsection (1); and
(b)
allow use of a renewable energy certificate that is issued, monitored, accounted for, or transferred by or through a regional system or trading program, including the Western Renewable Energy Generation Information System, to fulfill this part’s provisions.
(4)
A renewable energy certificate shall be issued for:
(a)
qualifying electricity generated on and after January 1, 1995; and
The person requesting a renewable energy certificate shall affirm that the renewable energy attributes of the electricity have not been traded, sold, transferred, or otherwise used to satisfy another state’s renewable energy requirements.
(6)
(a)
For the purpose of satisfying Subsection 54-17-602(1) and the issuance of a renewable energy certificate under this section, a renewable energy source located in this state that derives its energy from solar photovoltaic or solar thermal energy shall be credited for 2.4 kilowatt-hours of qualifying electricity for each 1.0 kilowatt-hour generated.
(b)
Notwithstanding Subsection (6)(a), the acquisition or construction by an electrical corporation of a renewable energy source that derives its energy from solar photovoltaic or solar thermal energy shall comply with the cost-effectiveness criteria of Subsection 54-17-201(2)(c)(ii).
(7)
A renewable energy certificate issued under this section:
(a)
does not expire; and
(b)
may be banked.
(8)
The commission may recognize a renewable energy certificate that is issued, monitored, accounted for, or transferred by or through another state or a regional system or trading program, including the Western Renewable Energy Generation Information System, if the renewable energy certificate is for qualifying electricity.
(9)
A renewable energy certificate:
(a)
may be used only once to satisfy Subsection 54-17-602(1);
(b)
may be used for the purpose of Subsection 54-17-602(1) and the qualifying electricity on which the renewable energy certificate is based may be used to satisfy any federal renewable energy requirement; and
(c)
may not be used if it has been used to satisfy any other state’s renewable energy requirement.
(10)
The commission shall establish procedures and reasonable rates permitting an electrical corporation that is a purchasing utility under Section 54-12-2 to acquire or retain a renewable energy certificate associated with the purchase of power from an independent energy producer.
