Solar & Battery Regulation & Incentive Programs
New Jersey's interconnection standards apply statewide to all electric distribution utilities, but not to the small number of municipal utilities and electric cooperatives in the state. The rules, first adopted in 2001, have been revised several times since their inception, most recently in May 2012. The current standards include the following basic provisions:
Interconnection contacts for the state's electric distribution utilities -- Atlantic City Electric, Rockland Electric, PSE&G, and Jersey Central Power and Light -- are available on the program web site listed at the top of this page. The program web site also contains an on-line form for making complaints to the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) in the event that a dispute cannot be resolved directly with the utility. Separate standardized interconnection agreements are used for systems of 10 kW or less and systems larger than 10 kW. These agreements are available on the interconnection web sites of the individual utilities.
History
Legislation enacted by New Jersey in February 1999 required electric distribution companies to offer net metering to residential and small commercial customers with photovoltaic and wind-energy systems. To implement net metering the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) adopted interim standards in 2001. In September 2004, the BPU adopted final rules that substantially increased the types and size of systems eligible for interconnection. The final rules clarified and simplified interconnection for most residential and small commercial facilities.
In January 2008, S.B. 2936 made substantial amendments to the net metering law (and interconnection law by extension), most notably extending net metering to large commercial and industrial customers and expanding the list of eligible technologies to include all "Class I" renewable energy resources. The interconnection rule revisions adopted in January 2010 implicitly incorporated these changes by using the definition of "customer-generator" contained in the net metering rules. Other major changes made by the January 2010 adoption include: (1) separating the interconnection rules from the net metering rules and relocating them to a separate section of the administrative code, (2) removing prior language that appeared to limit the standards to systems of 2 MW or less; and (3) adding new interconnection reporting requirements for utilities. The May 2012 adoption made a variety of clarifying changes focused primarily on procedural matters such as timelines, deadlines, and notification requirements.
Name | Enacted Date | Effective Date | Expired Date |
---|---|---|---|
N.J. Stat. § 48:3-87 | 1999 (subsequently amended) | ||
N.J.A.C. 14:8-5.1 et seq. | 09/13/2004 (subsequently amended) | 10/04/2004 |