Webinar:
Board Staff and TRC held a webinar on Thursday, August 12, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. to review the closure of the TI Program and the Launch of the Successor Solar Incentive Program.
Please note: the webinar slide deck and webinar recording are available on the New Jersey Clean Energy Program website on the page devoted to the Clean Energy Act of 2018 Solar Transition Proceeding found here.
The TI Program was designed to provide a bridge between the legacy SREC Registration Program (SRP) and the Successor Incentive Program. Per two Board Orders dated July 28, 2021, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) has established a process for closing the TI Program and opening the new SuSI Program to new registrations in the Administratively Determined Incentive (ADI) Program.
The following summarizes the procedures established by the Board’s July 28 action closing the Transition Incentive Program and opening the Successor Solar Incentive Program:
- The TI portal will close to all new applications on Friday, August 27, 2021 at 11:59:59 p.m. EST, with two exceptions as noted below:
- The TI portal will remain open beyond August 27, 2021 for new applications from Year 2 Community Solar projects that are currently pending final selection by NJBPU.
- New applications from Subsection (t) projects may apply for conditional certification until August 27, 2021, at 11:59:59 p.m. EST. In addition to timely submission of an application, these projects must fulfill all other requirements of certification for TREC eligibility pursuant to Subsection (t). If granted conditional certification by the Board, these projects will be eligible to register for the TI Program even if the Board grants conditional certification after August 27.
- The ADI Program registration portal will open and be available to accept new registrations on Saturday, August 28, 2021 at 12:01 a.m. EST.
Projects that will remain in the TI Program:
- Projects that have been issued a TI acceptance letter that have not yet reached their expiration date.
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TI Applications under the status of Application Received in the TI online portal on or before August 27, 2021, at 11:59:59 p.m. EST will remain in the TI Program based on the following criteria:
- TI Application Packets that are deemed complete with all TI requirements will be issued an acceptance letter and will have the opportunity to participate in the TI Program;
- TI Application Packets that are deemed incomplete due to major deficiencies will be rejected and the application will not be eligible to participate in the TI Program. These projects will have the opportunity to submit a new registration in the ADI Program; and
- TI Application Packets deemed incomplete due to a minor deficiency will have seven (7) business days to address the deficiency and complete the registration packet in the TI portal. If the application deficiencies are not resolved and the application deemed complete within seven (7) business days, the application will be rejected. These projects will have the opportunity to submit a new registration in the ADI Program.
NOTE: Projects under the status “cancelled,” “expired,” “application incomplete-major (rejected),” “application incomplete-final (rejected),” and “void” are not eligible to receive an incentive in the TI Program.
TI Projects under the Status “Eligible for TI”:
- Projects under the status “Eligible for TI” are applications that were transferred from the SRP to the TI Program following the close of the SRP in April 2020. Projects that were transferred and are under this status are required to enter the TI portal and select the appropriate Project Type to complete the transfer to the TI Program.
- Applications under the status “Eligible for TI” that have not selected their Project Type by August 27, 2021, at 11:59:59 p.m. EST will be terminated. The applicant, or other parties, if applicable, may have the opportunity to register the project in the ADI Program.
The Successor Solar Incentive (SuSI) Program:
The SuSI Program includes two sub-programs:
1. Administratively Determined Incentive (ADI) Program provides administratively set incentive values for net metered residential projects, net metered non-residential projects of 5 MW or less, all community solar projects, and, for an interim period, projects previously eligible to seek conditional certification from the Board under Subsection (t).
2. Competitive Solar Incentive (CSI) Program will provide competitively set incentive values for grid supply projects and net metered non-residential projects greater than 5 MW. Board Staff is currently working with stakeholders to develop the design of the CSI Program with the goal of holding the first solicitation by early-to-mid 2022. For updates, please continue to check the Solar Proceeding page on the New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program website.
Solar Facilities Eligible to Participate in the ADI Program:
- Net-metered residential, non-residential solar facilities 5 MWdc or less, and community solar PY2 projects.
- On an interim basis, projects located on property types that were previously eligible to seek conditional certification from the Board under the Subsection (t) program, which will now be referred to as “interim Subsection (t) projects.”
- Solar facilities are only eligible for the ADI Program if they have not yet reached commercial operation (defined as permission to operate) prior to the opening of the ADI Program.
- Solar facilities that reached commercial operation before August 28, 2021 must be granted special dispensation by NJBPU to participate in the ADI Program.
- All solar equipment installed must be new equipment.
- Solar facilities must be connected to a distribution or transmission system owned or operated by a New Jersey public utility or local government unit.
- Solar facilities receiving incentives that are 1 MWdc or greater in size are subject to the Prevailing Wage Act N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.25, et seq.
