Solar renewable energy credit markets in New Jersey continued to climb during the week ended June 9.
After rising more than $10 the week prior, energy year 2017 SRECs in New Jersey continued to gain ground, posting an average at $242.92/MWh, rising $9 on the week. Garden State energy year 2018 SRECs came in at $190.00/MWh, advancing almost $9 week over week.
New Jersey class I REC prices eased during the week under review. New Jersey vintage 2017 class I RECs were pegged at $5.51/MWh, down 21 cents from the week prior. New Jersey vintage 2018 class I RECs declined almost 25 cents week over week to an average at $5.98/MWh.
In Massachusetts, the 2017 solar I market was assessed at an index of $323.13/MWh, gaining more than $7 on the week, while the 2017 solar II market was pegged at an average at $282.38/MWh, increasing more than $2 week over week.
On June 5, the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources filed an emergency regulation to implement its new solar program known as the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target, or SMART, that seeks to spur the development of another 1,600 MW of solar energy within the state, starting in 2018.
The SMART program will eventually succeed the current SREC-II program and will offer a transitional mechanism to accommodate the completion of SREC-II while awaiting full implementation of SMART. The program will drop tradable solar energy certificates that fluctuate in price in favor of fixed electric distribution company tariffs to compensate eligible projects under long-term contracts. The distribution companies will pay for both the energy value and the solar incentive under a fixed price for 10 or 20 years, depending on the size of the projects.
SMART will use a declining block mechanism to procure the solar generation at an initial rate for projects larger than 1 MW that will be set by a competitive request for proposals slated for Oct. 3 and initial rates set by DOER for projects 1 MW or smaller. Subsequently, 200-MW blocks of capacity will be procured at rates that decline by 4% for each block. The maximum size for any project is 5 MW.
Elsewhere, class I REC prices in New Hampshire rebounded following recent weakness. As of the week ended June 9, New Hampshire class I RECs for 2017 saw an index at $20.00/MWh, up $4 on the week. Class II RECs in New Hampshire for 2017, which include solar generation, came in at $44.50/MWh during the week under review.
Market sources attributed a steep decline in New Hampshire REC prices in recent months to ample supply and a drop in demand.
Legislation, Senate Bill 129, recently passed in the New Hampshire House and is designed to make changes to the state's RPS, increasing the class II requirements from 0.3% this year to 0.5% in 2018, 0.6% in 2019 and 0.7% in 2020. The bill now heads to the governor for his signature.
Cross-State Air Pollution Rule emissions market indications see no change
Cross-State Air Pollution Rule emissions allowance price indications were steady during the week ended June 9.
CSAPR 2017 seasonal NOx allowances were assessed in a bid-and-offer spread of $650 to $750 once again, after peaking mid-May near $750, sparked by increased demand with the start of the ozone season. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in September 2016 finalized an update to the CSAPR Seasonal NOx program, which trimmed the seasonal NOx allocations by more than 40% starting this May.
CSAPR 2018 seasonal NOx allowances were also steady in bid-and-ask range of $225 to $275 during the week under review. CSAPR annual NOx allowances for 2017 were assessed flat as well, at a level of $2.50 on the bid side to $4.00 on the offer end.
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