Availability
Service under this Rider is available only to consumers located in the Cooperative’s service territory who have qualifying facilities fueled by trash or methane derived from landfills, hog waste, poultry waste, or other renewable (wind, photovoltaic, biomass-fueled, hydro) generating facilities contracting to sell generating capacity and energy greater than 25 kW but not in excess of 500 kW, which are interconnected directly with the Cooperative’s system and which are qualifying facilities as defined by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission pursuant to Section 210 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978.
Service necessary for the delivery of the consumer’s power into the Cooperative’s system under this Rider shall be furnished solely to the individual contracting consumer in a single enterprise, located entirely on a single, contiguous premise. Service hereunder shall be restricted to the capacity of the consumer’s generating facilities which may be operated in parallel with the Cooperative’s system. Service necessary to supply the consumer’s total load requirements other than Auxiliary Load, and service necessary to supply the consumer’s Auxiliary Load when the consumer’s generating facilities are not operating, shall be billed on the applicable Schedule(s) of the Cooperative. Power delivered to the Cooperative under this Rider shall not offset or be substituted for power contracted for or which may be contracted for under any other Schedule of the Cooperative. Prior to receiving service under this Rider, the consumer must have a signed “Standard Interconnection Agreement” between the consumer and the Cooperative.
The obligations of the Cooperative in regard to service under this Rider are dependent upon its securing and retaining all necessary rights-of-way, privileges, franchises, and permits for such service. The Cooperative shall not be liable to any consumer or applicant for power in the event it is delayed in or is prevented from purchasing power by its failure to secure and retain such rights-of-way, rights, privileges, franchises, and permits. Consumers receiving service under this Rate Rider must have their renewable generation registered with the North Carolina Utilities Commission prior to connecting to the Cooperative’s system.
Character of Service
Service shall be provided at one point of delivery through a single meter at one of the following voltages. Standard service shall be single-phase, 120/240 Volts, and 60 Hz. Three-phase service may be provided where available. Where three-phase service is available, voltages may be:
208/120 Volts or 480/277 Volts, 4-Wire wye
Service at other voltages may be available, at the option of the Cooperative.
Monthly Rate
The following charges and credits will be added to the consumer’s monthly bill based on the nameplate rating of the renewable generating facility:
Supplemental Monthly Basic Facilities Charges:
| Over 25 kW to 100 kW | $ 7.50 per month |
| Over 100 kW to 500 kW | $ 15.00 per month |
| Interconnection Facilities Charge 1: | $ 5.00 per month |
1 The Interconnection Facilities Charge may be increased according to the provisions of the paragraph entitled “Interconnection Facilities Charge” below.
| Energy Credits: | Variable Rate | 5 Years Fixed |
| All Energy per Month: | 2.82 ¢ per kWh | 2.96 ¢ per kWh |
Renewable Energy Certificates
Payments and/or credits for the Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and any environmental attributes produced as a result of the energy generated by the renewable generation shall be negotiated between the consumer and the Cooperative on a case-by-case basis, with the Cooperative having the first right of refusal. The negotiated price shall be based on the type of generation and the market for similar certificates at the time the generation comes online. Consumers receiving compensation for the RECs from the Cooperative shall not be eligible to participate in NC GreenPower’s renewable generation program.
Interconnection Facilities Charge
The consumer shall be responsible for providing suitable control and protective devices on their equipment to assure no disturbance to other consumers of the Cooperative or to the Cooperative itself, and to protect the consumer’s facilities from all loss or damage which could result from operation with the Cooperative’s system. All interconnection equipment, including control and protective devices, must meet or exceed the National Electric Code (NEC), National Electric Safety Code (NESC), and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Standards.
The Cooperative will furnish, install, own, and maintain and the consumer shall make an upfront contribution in aid of construction equal to the installed cost of all distribution, service, and interconnection-related facilities necessary for service under this Rider. Interconnection facilities include suitable control and protective devices installed on Cooperative equipment to allow operation of the consumer’s generating facilities; metering facilities equipped to prevent reverse registration for the measurement of service under this Rider; and any other modifications to its system required to serve the consumer under this Rider as determined by the Cooperative. All such distribution, service, and interconnection-related facilities shall be subject to a monthly Interconnection Facilities Charge equal to 1.0% times the installed cost of the required interconnection-related facilities.
The Cooperative reserves the right to install facilities necessary for the appropriate measurement of service under this Rider and to adjust the Interconnection Facilities Charge accordingly, solely at the option of the Cooperative.
Power Factor Correction
When the average monthly power factor of the power supplied by the consumer to the Cooperative is less than 97 percent or greater than 100 percent, the Cooperative may correct the energy, in kilowatt-hours, as appropriate. The Cooperative reserves the right to install facilities necessary for the measurement of power factor and to adjust the Interconnection Facilities Charge accordingly, solely at the option of the Cooperative.
Rate Updates
The Energy Credits and Supplemental Monthly Basic Facilities Charge of this Rider may be updated on an annual basis. Any changes in the Energy Credits will be based upon changes in the avoided cost of the Cooperative’s wholesale power supplier. Members who have contracted for the Fixed Long Term Credits will not be affected by updates in the Energy Credits until their rate term expires. For all Qualifying Facilities selling to the Cooperative pursuant to the Variable Credit provisions of this Rider, such credits shall be updated and changed in accordance with changes in the avoided cost of the Cooperative’s wholesale power supplier.
Definitions
Nameplate Capacity: The term “Nameplate Capacity” shall mean the maximum continuous electrical output capability of the generation at any time at a power factor of ninety-seven percent (97%).
Capacity: The term “Capacity” shall mean the Nameplate Capacity of the consumer’s generating facilities, less the portion of that capacity needed to serve the generating facilities’ Auxiliary Load.
Auxiliary Load: The term “Auxiliary Load” shall mean power used to operate auxiliary equipment in the facility necessary for power generation (such as pumps, blowers, fuel preparation machinery, and exciters).
Month: The term “Month” as used in this Rider means the period intervening between meter readings for the purposes of monthly billing, such readings being taken once per month.
Payments
Credit billings to the consumer shall be payable to the consumer within twenty-five (25) days of the date of the scheduled meter reading.
Contract Period
Each consumer shall enter into a contract that will specify the capacity of the Qualifying Facility and shall specify the initial term and the associated rate at the time the contract is executed. The initial term for consumers receiving credits under the variable rate and the five-year fixed long-term rate shall be a minimum of five (5) years.
The Cooperative reserves the right to terminate the consumer’s contract under this Rider at any time upon written notice to the consumer in the event that the consumer violates any of the terms or conditions of this Rider or operates it's generating facilities in a manner that is detrimental to the Cooperative or any of its consumers or fails to deliver energy to the Cooperative for six (6) consecutive months. In the event of early termination of a contract under this Rider, the consumer will be required to pay the Cooperative for costs due to such early termination.
Sales Tax
Any applicable State and local sales taxes will be added to all services billed under this Rider.