Bowing to public pressure, the Colorado power company Xcel Energy withdrew its plan to charge homes and small businesses with solar panels a “minimum charge.” The proposal for a base monthly charge on homes that “net meter,”* or sell into the Xcel grid as well as purchase power, would have averaged $1.90 a month, Xcel said. But the The Colorado Solar Energy Industry Association calculated it could cost $200 a year or more for very efficient homes and dampen sales of solar panels in Denver.
The new charge wouldn’t have affected any current customers using self-generated solar power, only those who installed solar panels after April 2010. The proposal was part of Xcel’s rate case, a series of proposals for pricing electricity, filed with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission in May.
Tom Henley, an Xcel Energy spokesman, initially told 7NEWS that implementing the fee would level the playing field for electricity users who are currently subsidizing connectivity fees for solar users, who sometimes use no electricity in a given month and therefore, pay no electrical fees.
But the idea of charging solar customers a monthly minimum drew a storm of protest from the Denver-area solar power installation businesses, their customers and supporters including the Governor’s Energy Office (GEO).
Gov of Colorado, Bill Ritter, said in a statement he “believed the surcharge would have created a disincentive for solar investments.” He continues: “We appreciate Xcel’s concerns about the cost of distributing power and maintaining the electric grid, and we will work with Xcel to study these issues moving forward. The New Energy Economy has become a key bright spot in the state’s overall economy. We must do all we can to encourage growth as we lead Colorado toward a new energy future.”
Since March 2006, about 3,000 homes and businesses have installed 33 megawatts of solar power valued at about $200 million, according to the industry association. The withdrawal of what would’ve been a damaging, short-sighted burden on the Colorado solar industry means that hopefully these numbers will continue to grow! To find out more about this solar coup, visit the full article here: Denver Post
*Net metering occurs when a customer’s solar panels send extra electricity onto the grid. That energy is ‘netted’ against electricity a customer uses at night or on cloudy days, when the sun isn’t shining. Customers sending more power to the grid than they use roll the net month-to-month and get a check for the balance at the end of the year.
Facebook comments: