Last week Andrea Marr, VP of Energy Services at Regatta Solutions, and other members of the California Clean Distributed Generation Coalition (CCDC) met with California state lawmakers at the State Capitol. The focus of the conversations was new legislation that would remove the unfair burden of departing load charges from most onsite cogeneration projects. This bill, AB674, sponsored by Assemblyman Kevin Mullin (D-22), would still require customers with clean onsite generation to pay utility fees for electricity purchased from the grid. It would, however, remove the requirement for these customers to pay what amounts to an additional 75-100% sales tax on these clean generation projects.
Regatta Solutions believes that a transition away from fossil fuel dependency is good for our environment, our air, and our economy. We also believe that cogeneration can ease the transition to a renewable economy by providing very efficient and powerful onsite generation and alleviating congestion on the grid. Industries like manufacturing and food production are extremely power intensive and no amount of solar on the roof will cover their usage. In all but very rare cases, manufacturers will continue to rely on the grid for all of their power, consuming more on hot days and putting a strain on the grid during peak times like the rest of us.
Without legislation to remove the burden of departing load charges, California is unlikely to meet Governor Brown’s goal of 6,500 MW of onsite power from cogeneration by 2020. In many cases, removing this charge would single handedly make projects financially viable. Regatta Solutions urges legislators to pass AB674 as quickly as possible to ensure California’s energy future remains clean and affordable.