New York Seeks Value For Distributed Energy And Reevaluates Net Metering

On December 23rd, 2015, The New York State Public Service Commission (NYPSC) issued a Notice under which it is soliciting comments concerning the value that Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) contribute to the distribution grid system. It is also soliciting feedback on a successor methodology to its current Net Energy Metering (NEM) policy that will help drive development in the interim. Both of these issues are being tackled by the NYPSC as part of New York's broader Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) initiative.

New York needs critical energy infrastructure to the tune of billions of dollars at the same time that utility revenues are falling. Additionally, more distributed generation (DG) is coming online, including DG resources that net meter to the grid, and therefore potentially shift the pro rata costs of grid maintenance onto non-DG owners. In response, the NYPSC opened the REV docket in an attempt to reconcile these trends as well as prepare for a more