Massachusetts Putting Its Net Metering Queue In Order

All renewable energy project developers, from first-time rooftop solar customers to seasoned municipal wind developers, must ask themselves: "how much does each kilowatt-hour (kWh) have to be worth for this investment to pay off? Can $0.15/kWh support a 2 megawatt (MW) photovoltaic array? Can $0.05/kWh? And what if there's no assurance which rate the project will receive until its completion?" Many prospective renewables developers are currently grappling with this last question in Massachusetts, and the state's Department of Public Utilities (DPU) holds the key to its resolution.

Current federal law, under the Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act of 1978 (PURPA), requires distribution companies to accept electricity from certain distributed generation sources, called "qualifying facilities," and to pay for that electricity at "avoided cost" (a wholesale electricity rate set by each state equal to the marginal cost of new generation). In Massachusetts, however, the