NREL Charts the Emergence of Corporate Procurement of Utility-Scale PV
Corporations and other institutions have contracted for more than 2,300 megawatts of off-site solar, using power purchase agreements (PPAs), green tariffs, or bilateral deals with utilities. A new paper by NREL examines the benefits, challenges, and outlooks for large-scale off-site solar purchasing in the United States.
Pathways differ based on where these procurements are available, the hedge value they can provide, and their ease of implementation. Authored by NREL's Jenny Heeter, Jeffrey J. Cook, and Lori Bird, the paper features case studies of an aggregate PPA (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston Medical Center, and Post Office Square), a corporation exiting their incumbent utility (MGM Resorts), a utility offering large-scale renewables to corporate customers (Alabama Power’s Renewable Procurement Program), and a company with approval to sell energy into wholesale markets (Google Energy Inc.).
Webinar October 9
Join NREL for a free webinar Monday, October 9, from 1 to 2:15 p.m. Mountain Time, to discuss this new research. Speakers will include:
- Jeff Cook and Jenny Heeter, NREL
- Stan Blackwell, Dominion Energy Virginia
- Kevin Hagen, Iron Mountain
- Garrett Sprague, Customer First Renewables
- Jennifer Snyder, Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission
Learn More
- Summary
- Full Report
- Slide Deck
- Contact: Jenny Heeter, lead author
About NREL Solar Market Research and Analysis
NREL is working to enable faster, easier, and less expensive installations by addressing soft costs and market barriers through data collection, analysis, and assistance to decision-makers who affect solar markets. This cross-cutting set of activities leverages NREL's unique analytical and deployment capabilities.