Delaware fine tunes solar program rules, incentives

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) recently announced changes to its Delmarva Power Green Energy Fund program, which will see slight reductions on grants for customer-owned solar energy systems.

The reductions will only apply to projects with contracts signed after Dec. 1. The department has also updated the program to discontinue grants previously offered for systems installed under a lease/power purchase agreement (PPA) financing model. The DNREC also determined, based on stakeholder feedback, that its program requirements for existing nonresidential construction should not include an energy audit.

“We review the grant levels for the Delmarva Power Green Energy Fund program periodically in response to changing market conditions to ensure that the program continues to be cost effective,” DNREC Division of Energy & Climate Energy Program Administrator Robert Underwood said. “Because the economics of solar energy continue to get stronger, we have seen the market for solar energy in Delaware grow even as we have reduced incentives in recent years.”

According to a DNREC analysis, the updates to the program, which were based on public comment, stakeholder workshops and consultations with the Delaware Sustainable Energy Utility Oversight Board, will not have a large impact on the state’s solar market.