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Palo Alto: Going Carbon Neutral by Going Big on Solar
Jim Stack, Ph.D. Senior Resource Planner
Lindsay Joye, P.E.
Solar Marketing Engineer
Vote Solar Webinar July 24, 2013
26 square miles
Territory runs from the SF Bay to the Mountains
Population: 64,000
Employment: >80,000
Approximately 29,500 customers (73,500 meters)
Palo Alto at a Glance
CPAU Delivers Five Utility Services
4
Palo Alto’s Electric Utility Not CPUC regulated
– City Council is decision-making authority
Annual load: ~1,000 GWh Peak: 190 MW
Current Supply – Hydroelectric – Wind – Biogas (LFG) – Natural gas (and RECs) – Some local solar (NEM)
Future Supply – Large solar (utility scale)
Utilities Incentive Programs Rebates, Solar water heating, NEM, DR, and more
Renewable Portfolio Standard (2002) 33% by 2015 with a rate impact up to 0.5 ¢/kWh
PaloAltoGreen (2003)
City’s Climate Protection Plan (2007) Community-wide GHG emissions 15% below 2005 level by 2020
10-year Energy Efficiency Plan (2007)
Feed-in Tariff Program (Palo Alto CLEAN) (2012) Local solar Feed-in-tariff at 16.5 ¢/kWh for a 20 year contract
Carbon Neutral Electric Portfolio Plan (2013)
Key Climate Initiatives
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Electric Supply GHG Emissions
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
160,000
180,000
200,000
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Tota
l Ele
ctri
city
Su
pp
ly E
mis
sio
ns
(To
nn
es
CO
2e
)
Calendar Year
Total Emissions (Actual / Projected)
Total Emissions (Carbon Neutral Plan)
Total Emissions (Average Hydro)
Actual Projected
8 8
Solar Accomplishments
1999: PV Partners Rebates for Net Metered PV
2003: PaloAltoGreen voluntary 100% renewable
2012: PA CLEAN Feed-in Tariff for PV
2013: Carbon Neutral Electric Portfolio
2012-2013: Solar Power Procurement (PPAs)
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Palo Alto Green
Voluntary renewable energy program, started in 2003
Premium 1.5 ₵/kWh
100% renewable energy credits from CA solar
>21% of customers are on PAGreen
Ranked #1 in US for last 5 years
10
PV Partners Program
Rebates for Net Metered PV systems
Started 1999
Increased funding in 2007 (SB1)
6.5 MW goal by 2017
Current rebates: – Residential: $1/watt
– Non-Res: $0.25/kWh paid over 5 years
-
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
3.5
4.0
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99
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20
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Cumulative Installed PV Capacity (MW)
Residential NonResidential
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Distributed Generation Avoided transmission & capacity costs
~$30/MWh
Wind and biogas – low potential
Solar PV is most viable
– Limited space for ground mount
– Best suited for rooftops and parking lots
12
Palo Alto CLEAN Concept
Clean Local Energy Accessible Now
Fixed Feed-in Tariff paid for 20 year term
Interconnected on utility side of meter
CPAU buys electricity, renewable energy credits and capacity attributes
Energy used to meet Renewable Portfolio Standard goals
Price based on value of local renewable electricity to CPAU
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PA CLEAN Details
2012 price = 14 ¢/kWh
2013 price = 16.5 ¢/kWh
No minimum project size
2 MW program capacity
Continued outreach to property owners, solar developers & CLEAN Coalition
… no projects, YET
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PA CLEAN: Ideal Candidate
Has available rooftop space
Interested in generating green energy, but not able to use it themselves (e.g. building owner who leases the building to tenants who pay utilities)
Looking for additional revenue from their rooftop
May develop the project themselves or lease the roof to a solar developer
15
PA CLEAN Lessons
Challenging to find suitable locations
Hard to compete with higher ROI for net metered PV
Hard to locate property owners who don’t pay utilities and want to monetize roof or parking areas
City may need to offer additional services to match property owners with developers
16
Palo Alto’s RPS History
2002 2006 2007 2011
20% by 2017 (SB 1078)
10% by 2008, 20% by 2015
20% by 2010 (SB 107)
20% by 2008, 30% by 2012, 33% by 2015
33% by 2015
33% by 2020 (SB X1-2)
California
Palo Alto
Contracted RPS Resources
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
GW
h p
er Y
ear
Large Solar
PA CLEAN
RECs
Landfill Gas
Wind
Small Hydro33% RPS Target
100% Carbon Neutral Portfolio
Hydro53%
Wind12%
LFG11%
Solar23%
Market Power0.7%
2017
Hydro43%
Wind12%
LFG7%
Market Power38%
2012
Palo Alto’s Resource Supply Mix
Open, competitive solicitation process
Issue an RFP once a year (approx.)
No unsolicited bilateral deals
Response rate has grown exponentially
Over 90 project proposals received in 2012
City staff negotiates PPA with seller
3 step approval process after seller executes
Utilities Advisory Commission, Finance Committee, City Council
RPS Procurement Efforts
Go shopping fairly often/regularly
Get the word out across the industry
Streamline and simplify the proposal submission process as much as possible
“Just the facts”
Be very clear and very specific about what types of offers will be accepted
Establish objective evaluation criteria
Before issuing the RFP!
RPS Procurement Lessons Learned
4 solar PPAs executed in last 8 months
Weighted average price: $70.40/MWh
100 MWAC total
25-30 year terms
1 COD in late 2014
3 CODs in late 2016
Palo Alto’s Solar PPAs
Renewable Energy Supplies & Green Premium Carbon neutrality with a total rate impact of 0.11 ¢/kWh,
or less than $0.75/month for a home
Generation (GWh/yr)
Green Premium ($000/yr)
Operating Projects 194 (808)
Committed, Not Yet Operating Projects
91 2,729
Total Committed 285
or 29% RPS 1,921
or 0.20 ¢/kWh
3 Solar PPAs (2016 start dates)
183 (850)
Total with 3 Solar PPAs 468
or 48% RPS 1,071
or 0.11 ¢/kWh
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CONTACT INFORMATION
Jim Stack, 650-329-2314
Lindsay Joye, 650-329-2680
www.cityofpaloalto.org/solarprograms
