Dive Brief:
- A crowded interconnection queue and falling power prices have led an increasing number of North Carolina solar developers to consider selling their power into the PJM Interconnection marketplace.
- A dozen or more solar developers have listed out-of-state sales as a possible market for their projects, the Charlotte Business Journal reported.
- Among the projects, Duke Energy has proposed an 80 MW solar facility in Currituck County, North Carolina, with the possibility of selling the power either to an affiliate in the state or into deregulated markets to the north.
Dive Insight:
Duke Energy Renewables announced the first deal to sell North Carolina solar power into the PJM market last year, and the Charlotte Business Journal says there is a good chance many other developers will soon follow suit. Duke's Capital Partners Project is a 52-MW project that targets three institutional customers in Washington, D.C. Duke has already proposed selling more power, from its facility in Currituck County, into the PJM market.
“We have great solar resources in North Carolina, and there is a lot of demand in PJM," Joel Olsen, president of solar developer O2 Energies, told the Journal. The company has three 20-MW projects in development, and the PJM market is a potential for that power.
North Carolina's solar industry has taken off in recent years, rising from 1 MW of installed capacity in 2007 to almost 1,000 MW at the end of last year. According to the Rocky Mountain Institute, that success is tied in part to the state's 12.5% by 2021 renewables mandate, a 35% investment tax credit from the state, and a 30% credit from the federal government.
The state is expected to add almost 3,000 MW of capacity through 2023, according to Navigant Research.