(1) In accordance with other law, the commission shall include in the retail electric rates of an electrical corporation whose rates the commission regulates the state‘s share of any of the costs listed in Subsection (2) that are relevant to the proceeding in which the commission is considering the electrical corporation‘s rates:

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Terms Used In Utah Code 54-17-605

  • Clean energy source: means :
         (5)(a) an electric generation facility or generation capability or upgrade that becomes operational on or after January 1, 1995, that derives its energy from one or more of the following:
              (5)(a)(i) wind energy;
              (5)(a)(ii) solar photovoltaic and solar thermal energy;
              (5)(a)(iii) wave, tidal, and ocean thermal energy;
              (5)(a)(iv) except for combustion of wood that has been treated with chemical preservatives such as creosote, pentachlorophenol or chromated copper arsenate, biomass and biomass byproducts, including:
                   (5)(a)(iv)(A) organic waste;
                   (5)(a)(iv)(B) forest or rangeland woody debris from harvesting or thinning conducted to improve forest or rangeland ecological health and to reduce wildfire risk;
                   (5)(a)(iv)(C) agricultural residues;
                   (5)(a)(iv)(D) dedicated energy crops; and
                   (5)(a)(iv)(E) landfill gas or biogas produced from organic matter, wastewater, anaerobic digesters, or municipal solid waste;
              (5)(a)(v) geothermal energy located outside the state;
              (5)(a)(vi) waste gas and waste heat capture or recovery, including methane gas from:
                   (5)(a)(vi)(A) an abandoned coal mine; or
                   (5)(a)(vi)(B) a coal degassing operation associated with a state-approved mine permit;
              (5)(a)(vii) efficiency upgrades to a hydroelectric facility, without regard to the date upon which the facility became operational, if the upgrades become operational on or after January 1, 1995;
              (5)(a)(viii) compressed air, if:
                   (5)(a)(viii)(A) the compressed air is taken from compressed air energy storage; and
                   (5)(a)(viii)(B) the energy used to compress the air is a clean energy source;
              (5)(a)(ix) municipal solid waste; or
              (5)(a)(x) energy derived from nuclear fuel;
         (5)(b) any of the following:
              (5)(b)(i) up to 50 average megawatts of electricity per year per electrical corporation from a certified low-impact hydroelectric facility, without regard to the date upon which the facility becomes operational, if the facility is certified as a low-impact hydroelectric facility on or after January 1, 1995, by a national certification organization;
              (5)(b)(ii) geothermal energy if located within the state, without regard to the date upon which the facility becomes operational; or
              (5)(b)(iii) hydroelectric energy if located within the state, without regard to the date upon which the facility becomes operational;
         (5)(c) hydrogen gas derived from any source of energy described in Subsection (5)(a) or (b);
         (5)(d) if an electric generation facility employs multiple energy sources, that portion of the electricity generated that is attributable to energy sources described in Subsections (5)(a) through (c); and
         (5)(e) any of the following located in the state and owned by a user of energy:
              (5)(e)(i) a demand side management measure, as defined by Subsection Utah Code 54-17-601
  • Commission: means the Public Service Commission. See Utah Code 54-2-1
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Corporation: includes an association and a joint stock company having any powers or privileges not possessed by individuals or partnerships. See Utah Code 54-2-1
  • Person: means :
         (24)(a) an individual;
         (24)(b) an association;
         (24)(c) an institution;
         (24)(d) a corporation;
         (24)(e) a company;
         (24)(f) a trust;
         (24)(g) a limited liability company;
         (24)(h) a partnership;
         (24)(i) a political subdivision;
         (24)(j) a government office, department, division, bureau, or other body of government; and
         (24)(k) any other organization or entity. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Property: includes both real and personal property. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Qualifying electricity: means electricity generated on or after January 1, 1995, from a clean energy source if:
         (8)(a)
              (8)(a)(i) the renewable energy source is located within the geographic boundary of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council; or
              (8)(a)(ii) the qualifying electricity is delivered to the transmission system of an electrical corporation or a delivery point designated by the electrical corporation for the purpose of subsequent delivery to the electrical corporation; and
         (8)(b) the renewable energy attributes of the electricity are not traded, sold, transferred, or otherwise used to satisfy another state's renewable energy program. See Utah Code 54-17-601
  • Renewable energy certificate: means a certificate issued under Section 54-17-603. See Utah Code 54-17-601
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Unbundled renewable energy certificate: means a renewable energy certificate associated with:
         (11)(a) qualifying electricity that is acquired by an electrical corporation or other person by trade, purchase, or other transfer without acquiring the electricity for which the certificate was issued; or
         (11)(b) activities listed in Subsection (5)(e). See Utah Code 54-17-601
     (1)(a) if the costs are prudently incurred by the electrical corporation in connection with:

          (1)(a)(i) the acquisition of a renewable energy certificate;
          (1)(a)(ii) the acquisition of qualifying electricity for which a renewable energy certificate will be issued after the acquisition; and
          (1)(a)(iii) the acquisition, construction, and use of a clean energy source; and
     (1)(b) to the extent any qualifying electricity or clean energy source under Subsection (1)(a) satisfies the cost-effectiveness criteria of Subsection 54-17-201(2)(c)(ii).
(2) The following are costs that may be recoverable under Subsection (1):

     (2)(a) a cost of siting, acquisition of property rights, equipment, design, licensing, permitting, construction, owning, operating, or otherwise acquiring a clean energy source and any associated asset, including transmission;
     (2)(b) a cost to acquire qualifying electricity through trade, power purchase, or other transfer;
     (2)(c) a cost to acquire a bundled or unbundled renewable energy certificate, if any net revenue from the sale of a renewable energy certificate allocable to this state is also included in rates;
     (2)(d) a cost to interconnect a clean energy source to the electrical corporation’s transmission and distribution system;
     (2)(e) a cost associated with using a physical or financial asset to integrate, firm, or shape a clean energy source on a firm annual basis to meet a retail electricity need; and
     (2)(f) any cost associated with transmission and delivery of qualifying electricity to a retail electricity consumer.
(3)

     (3)(a) The commission may allow an electrical corporation to use an adjustment mechanism or reasonable method other than a rate case under Sections 54-4-4 and 54-7-12 to allow recovery of costs identified in Subsection (2).
     (3)(b) If the commission allows the use of an adjustment mechanism, both the costs and any associated benefit shall be reflected in the mechanism, to the extent practicable.
     (3)(c) This Subsection (3) creates no presumption for or against the use of an adjustment mechanism.
(4)

     (4)(a) The commission may permit an electrical corporation to include in its retail electric rates the state’s share of costs prudently incurred by the electrical corporation in connection with a clean energy source, whether or not the clean energy source ultimately becomes operational, including costs of:

          (4)(a)(i) siting;
          (4)(a)(ii) property acquisition;
          (4)(a)(iii) equipment;
          (4)(a)(iv) design;
          (4)(a)(v) licensing;
          (4)(a)(vi) permitting; and
          (4)(a)(vii) other reasonable items related to the clean energy source.
     (4)(b) Subsection (4)(a) creates no presumption concerning the prudence or recoverability of the costs identified.
     (4)(c) To the extent deferral is consistent with other applicable law, the commission may allow an electrical corporation to defer costs recoverable under Subsection (4)(a) until the recovery of the deferred costs can be considered in a rate proceeding or an adjustment mechanism created under Subsection (3).
     (4)(d) An application to defer costs shall be filed within 60 days after the day on which the electrical corporation determines that the clean energy source project is impaired under generally accepted accounting principles and will not become operational.
     (4)(e) Notwithstanding the opportunity to defer costs under Subsection (4)(c), a cost incurred by an electrical corporation for siting, property acquisition, equipment, design, licensing, and permitting of a clean energy source that the electrical corporation proposes to construct shall be included in the electrical corporation’s project costs for the purpose of evaluating the project’s cost-effectiveness.
     (4)(f) A deferred cost under Subsection (4)(a) may not be added to, or otherwise considered in the evaluation of, the cost of a project proposed by any person other than the electrical corporation for the purpose of evaluating that person’s proposal.
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