NEWSLETTER | DECEMBER 2017
Statewide solar permit application will make it easier to do business in Rhode Island
Beginning January 1, 2018, municipalities, businesses and individuals will benefit from a uniform, statewide solar permit application, which streamlines the building and electric permit processes for solar installations.

The application – which will be a requirement for all scales of solar development, from residential to industrial-scale projects – will continue the State’s efforts to reduce the soft costs of solar development and continue progress toward Rhode Island’s clean energy goals. In March, Governor Gina Raimondo announced a goal to increase Rhode Island's clean energy output to 1,000MW by 2020, and reach 20,000 clean energy jobs in the process.

OER worked in collaboration with an array of stakeholders, including the Rhode Island Building Code Commission, Rhode Island League of Cities and Towns, building and electrical trade groups, solar businesses, and local building and electric officials.

The application is now available on the OER website.
Real Jobs Rhode Island opens solar sales training course
Real Jobs RI is launching a first-of-its-kind Rhode Island Solar Sales Training course to prepare students for the NABCEP PV Technical Sales Training Certification exam and for a future working in Rhode Island's growing clean energy market.

Students will learn:
  • Training material covering NABCEP certification exam content.
  • Common installation violations in Rhode Island.
  • Installation best practices specific to Rhode Island.
  • Rhode Island solar incentives, including those offered through the Rhode Island Renewable Energy Fund (REF) and Renewable Energy Growth (REG).

The 32-hour technical solar sales training course is open to the first 40 registrations. The course will be held from Monday, February 26, through Friday, March 2, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  

Real Jobs RI is a program designed to ensure that Rhode Island employers have the talent they need to compete and grow, while providing targeted education and skills training for Rhode Island workers. This class will help create a pipeline of trained electricians to meet our State's future solar needs and will contribute to meeting the Governor's goal of 20,000 clean energy workers by 2020.
Municipalities save through clean energy projects: Efficient Buildings Fund finances $10.4M in projects, supports 170 jobs
Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank recently announced the second round of Efficient Buildings Fund (EBF) financing. The Infrastructure Bank will finance $10.4 million in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in Cumberland, East Providence, Hopkinton, Warren and West Warwick, which will create or support 170 jobs.

Combined, the energy efficiency projects are expected to produce energy savings greater than 25 percent, and annual energy and maintenance cost savings of over $1 million. The savings achieved by the four energy efficiency transactions is equivalent to the average annual energy consumption of 321 Rhode Island homes. In addition, the five communities will realize approximately $10 million in net cash flow savings over the useful life of the improvements. CO2 emissions will be reduced by an amount equal to 7 million miles driven by the average passenger car annually.

The Efficient Buildings Fund is a program designed to provide attractive financing to public entities for projects that promote energy efficiency and clean energy. It is administered in partnership between RIIB and the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources. This is the second EBF transaction since the program’s introduction in 2015. To date, EBF has financed $27.6 million in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in 10 Rhode Island communities.
Governor honors OER employee for making State government greener
George Sfinarolakis, chief of program development of the Office of Energy Resources, was named a recipient of the 2017 Rhode Service Award. Governor Gina Raimondo presented the award.

George has been instrumental in the State's Lead by Example initiative, where he oversees and coordinates the efforts at State agencies to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

Several of his accomplishments include:

  • Development of the streetlight energy efficiency incentive program for the State and municipalities. Currently, more than 70,000 streetlights have been converted to LEDs.

  • Providing leadership for solar installations at State buildings. In 2017, four solar rooftop installations were completed on three Capitol Hill buildings and on the new Rhode Island Veterans Home in Bristol.

  • Reverse auctions for electricity and natural gas supply procurement for all State agencies, creating cost-savings for Rhode Island.
Narragansett Bay Commission on track to reach "net-zero" electrical use by 2018
The Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC) is a renewable energy leader among Rhode Island State quasi-public agencies. NBC currently obtains 45 percent of its energy needs from six 1.5 MW industrial class wind turbines and has established a goal of obtaining all electricity from local renewable energy resources by December 2018 to achieve "net-zero" status. 

Wastewater treatment facilities are one of the largest consumers of electricity. The treatment process requires a consistent and reliable source of electricity to run its wastewater collection and treatment operations. NBC is using more than 36,000,000 kWh of electricity annually at a cost of about $4 million per year.

Therefore, NBC is leading by example and making a full transition toward renewable energy sources to achieve its “net-zero” status well in advance of the 2025 goal set forth in Governor Raimondo’s Lead by Example Executive order.

The State's Lead by Example initiative promotes the adoption of clean energy measures across public sector facilities and state agencies. State and municipal employees are helping to reduce energy costs and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, consistent with Rhode Island's economic, energy and environmental goals.

UPCOMING EVENTS & MEETINGS
January 4
1:00 to 2:30 p.m.
Energy Efficiency & Resource Management Council  - Executive Committee Meeting
1 Capitol Hill, Second Floor, Conf. Room B, Providence, RI
January 17
6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Bay Spring Community Center, 170 Narragansett Ave., Barrington, RI
January 18
3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
1 Capitol Hill, Second Floor, Conf. Room B, Providence, RI
January 23
6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Mount Hope Farm, 250 Metacom Ave., Bristol, RI
January 25
2:00 to 4:00 p.m.
West Greenwich Community Center, (behind Louttit Library), 274 Victory Hwy, W. Greenwich, RI
January 31
6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
South Kingstown Recreation Center, 30 St. Dominic Road, South Kingstown, RI
February 7
5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
North Scituate Library, 606 W. Greenville Rd., North Scituate, RI
Would you like to add your energy-related event to our calendar? Send the details and event URL to our editor at robert.beadle@energy.ri.gov .