Public Power Magazine - July/August 2015

PUBLIC
POWER
AMERICAN PUBLIC POWER ASSOCIATION • JULY/AUGUST 2015
The Community
Solar Issue

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4 Public Power Lines by Sue Kelly
34 Washington Report
35 Engineering
36 Security
37 Innovation
38 Resources: Making AMI Work for a
Small Utility
40 100 Years of Pride in Public Power
8 Find Fertile Ground in
Public Power
Public power was an early adopter of
the community solar trend.
14 Fund a Solar Suitcase
Give the gift of electricity to save
lives.
20 Healthy Choices
Choosing the best distributed
generation rate design for your utility.
26 Customer Perspectives
Community solar customers are
informed and eager participants.
32 The Many Dimensions
of Leadership
An interview with Doug Hunter,
chairman of the American Public
Power Association.
41 What Is Community
Solar?
Captain Public Power explains how
community solar works.
FEATURES
CONT ENT S
Cover illustration by Richard Weiss
The Community Solar Issue
#PublicPower
Search for American Public Power and Connect with us

Customer preferences for how they get their electricity are changing.
Increasingly, customers want to have more than one source of power. They
want more independence and choice. They want to cut their utility bills.
They want to make the most of the sunshine and profit from any excess
power they might generate from it. All this is driving increased interest in
distributed generation, energy efficiency and demand response.
The demand for DG, particularly solar, is growing fast. As of
October 2014, just under 8,000 MW of solar capacity was in-
stalled on residential and business rooftops throughout the
United States. However, the National Renewable Energy
Laboratory estimates that 49 percent of U.S. households
cannot access rooftop solar for various reasons. This is a
prime opportunity for community solar, which in many
ways is made for public power utilities with roots in the
community.
Community solar allows a public power utility to install
a solar power source in a common location and share the
output - even the ownership - with customers through vari-
ous business models.
Community solar projects are good for customers,
who get the benefit of locally produced solar
power without having to install rooftop
panels; and good for the utilities, as they
can better manage reliability and rate
impacts. This issue of Public Power maga-
zine has various examples of innovative
community solar projects that many
public power utilities have implement-
ed. And we know there are many more
around the country.
In addition to community solar,
there are other options for you to keep
up with customer preferences.
As Joe Nipper, APPA’s senior vice
president for regulatory affairs and
communications, said in a recent
email to members, “If your public
power community hasn’t seen inter-
est in solar yet, it doesn’t mean you
won’t in the near future. And no matter
what your customers want, you want to
be a step ahead. You want to anticipate their
needs. Whatever options they’re considering,
you want them to think of you as an expert
resource.”
PHOTOBYDENNISBRACK
Engaging Customers
Through Community Solar
By Sue Kelly • President & CEO, American Public Power Association
PUBLIC POWER LINES
@CEOPublicPower • blog.publicpower.org
Solar Engagement Options for Public Power, a book published by
APPA’s Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments program,
explains the four ways — purchased power, utility ownership, customer
engagement and community solar — your utility can integrate solar into
your energy mix.
An Introduction to Community Shared Solar Programs for
Public Power Utilities, also offered by APPA’s DEED program,
explains the process for developing utility-driven solar projects
with multiple participants who share ownership, costs and
benefits. With case studies from different types of utilities,
the publication explains how utilities that take or share
leadership of solar projects can realize benefits, with limited
risk.
APPA is here to help you handle the widespread inter-
est in solar. We recently put together some key messages
and talking points for members to adapt and use to educate
your customers, board and council members, media, and
policymakers about solar DG.
Our latest book, Distributed Generation: A
Guidebook for Public Power Utilities, pres-
ents an overview of small-scale energy
supply systems — thermal, renewable,
fuel cell and energy storage technologies
— and discusses a five-step process
you can use to prepare for the poten-
tial outcomes of DG integration.
And a new white paper, Rate
Design for Distributed Generation:
Net Metering Alternatives, dis-
cusses new rate designs that help
you recoup more of your costs
and encourage rooftop solar
deployment.
In this very magazine, you’ll
find tips and easy-to-read info-
graphics that you can reproduce
and share with your customers.
If you need anything else, just let
us know. APPA is here to help as
you keep up with your community’s
changing needs and embody the true
public power spirit of responsiveness
to customer needs.
4 Public Power / July-August 2015

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T O P - N O T C H L E A R N I N G A N D N E T W
Executive leadership • Legal • Accounting & finance • HR and administration • Operations & engineering
Utility
Education
& Training
Your One Stop Shop for All Business & Financial Conference
Sept. 13 – 16, New Orleans, Louisiana
A refresher for seasoned professionals and in-
depth learning for those new to utility business and
administration. Five key tracks — Accounting &
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Resources & Training, Information Technology, and
Pricing & Market Analysis. Sessions on regulatory
accounting, bonds and compliance, internal controls,
GASB 68, management reporting, the EPA Clean
Power Plan, financial forecasting, repurposing a power
plant, and more.
Discounted early registration ends Aug. 21.
Fall Education Institute
Oct. 5 – 9, Savannah, Georgia
In-depth training courses for all skill levels. Focus on a
single topic or spend the week in multiple classes for
comprehensive training and networking with peers.
Earn CEUs, PDHs and CPEs, while receiving top-
notch instruction from professionals with extensive
public power experience. Courses in five tracks —
Accounting, Cost of Service & Retail Rate Design,
Performing a Utility Financial Check–Up, Key Accounts
Certificate Program, Underground Distribution Systems
and Executive Leadership.
Public Power Leadership Workshop
Oct. 7–9, Savannah, Georgia
Overview of challenges facing public power and the
skills and knowledge leaders need to guide utilities
through change. Ideal for seasoned, new, and aspiring
general managers and CEOs. Learn where the industry
is heading and how your peers are handling tough
issues such as planning for strategic resources,
ensuring a utility’s financial health and performance,
managing change, and developing effective leadership
styles for the future.

Legal Seminar
Oct. 11–14, Key West, Florida
Professional development opportunity for in-house and
outside counsel attorneys. Covers the latest legal and
regulatory issues affecting public power as well as the
practical legal issues facing municipal utilities. Essential
learning and networking for anyone who oversees utility
policy, including senior and mid-level utility managers
and elected and appointed policymakers.
Customer Connections Conference
Oct. 18–21, Austin, Texas
Unparalleled training and exchange of ideas in
Customer Service, Economic Development, Energy
Services, Key Accounts and Public Communications.
Sessions on new trends and developments in creating
a customer service culture, video production, social
media, distributed generation, energy efficiency,
community engagement and more.
***NEW***
Public Power Forward Summit
Oct. 26–27, Alexandria, Virginia
APPA’s new strategic plan tags the opportunities and
challenges of the future — distributed generation,
energy storage, microgrids, energy services utilities,
and more — as “Public Power Forward.” Electricity
industry technologies, customer perspectives,
distribution models, government policies, the fuel mix
and more are changing fast. What’s hype and what’s
reality? Join APPA’s first-ever Public Power Forward
Summit to preview the future. Explore the policies,
programs and tools that will help public power utilities
ride the wave of change.
O R K I N G F O R U T I L I T Y P E R S O N N E L
• Customer service • Key accounts • Energy services • PR and communications • Economic development
W E B I N A R S
A C C O U N T I N G & F I N A N C E S E R I E S
Industry Trends and Future Rate Structures / July 9
Sustainability Accounting and Reporting / Aug. 11
P U B L I C U T I L I T Y G O V E R N A N C E S E R I E S
Rate Making for Utility Boards and City Councils / July 14
O T H E R T O P I C A L W E B I N A R S
Negotiating Power Purchase Agreements: A Practical Guide / July 22
Protecting Public Power Utilities Eligibility for FEMA Assistance / July 28
In-House Training Program
If it’s difficult for your staff and governing board to attend
education courses outside of the office, let the APPA
Academy come to you. We can bring any existing course to
your facility or customize an agenda based on your needs. For
more information, contact Heidi Lambert at 202/467-2921 or
HLambert@PublicPower.org

Ask us your
questions about
#CommunitySolar
@PublicPowerOrg

Public power was an early adopter of the community solar
trend and continues to drive its popularity.
By Elisa Wood, Contributing Writer
Community
SolarGardens
FindFertileGround
inPublicPower

People like solar energy, but not everyone has a sunny roof-
top or the money for solar panels. Until recently, that pre-
vented a large swath of Americans from going solar.
But no more. Community solar — also known as solar
gardens — provides a way to bring solar to just about anyone.
So not surprisingly, it’s making its way into utility markets at
a road-runner pace.
The Solar Electric Power Association has been tracking
the phenomenon — or at least making a valiant effort to
do so.
Growth is occurring so quickly that “it’s hard to polish
something up for public consumption without it being dated
before it’s even released,” said Becky Campbell, SEPA senior
research manager. “It’s frustrating, but it’s a great frustration
to have — this market segment is exploding.”
Strong credit goes to publicly owned utilities for driving
the trend early — and doing so still.
Take for example Seattle City Light. The Washington
utility championed the idea well before most had heard of
it, and has created four community solar projects with more
than 1,300 participants.
Seattle City Light traces its community solar program to
2008 when it was designated by the U.S. Department of En-
ergy as one of 25 Solar America Cities.
At the time, the municipal utility had some pro-solar ini-
tiatives. But Seattle had an image problem. Few of its resi-
dents thought to pursue solar. Who would in a place where
it’s cloudy so often?
So the city formed what it called the Emerald City Solar
Initiative, a team of experts in renewable energy, project
development, policy, advocacy and public outreach. The
goal was to make the public aware that Seattle had even
more solar potential than Germany, the world leader in so-
lar development.
Among other things, the group helped push forward
legislation that allowed community solar to receive a pro-
duction incentive.
Seattle’s community solar program works in a fairly
straightforward way. The utility pays the upfront cost to build
and maintain a solar array, which feeds into the electric grid.
Community members buy shares in the output for $150 each.
Customers in turn are paid back for the investment
through state and utility production credits that run
through 2020. The credits are $1.08/kWh from the state
and $0.0764/kWh from Seattle City Light. Ownership will
be transferred in 2020 over to the customers, who are able
to take advantage of the stable-priced solar electricity.
In March 2012 Seattle City Light completed its first
community solar project at Jefferson Park where 23.4 kW of
rooftop solar is installed on three picnic shelters. The utility
sold 471 shares in the project.
The utility’s next project signaled just how popular
community solar would become. Seattle City Light offered
1,850 shares in a 44.4-kW system installed on the Seat-
tle Aquarium’s south-facing roof in December 2013. The
shares sold out in six weeks.
Since then, Seattle City Light has installed two more
community solar projects.
Continued on page 16

What Is Community Solar?
Modeled after the idea of the community vegetable garden,
community solar gives homeowners and businesses an
alternative to installing solar on their own premises. The
solar project instead is built in a central location and its
benefits are shared among many participants.
Exactly how it’s done varies, often based on state law or
utility preferences.
Projects are typically grid-connected and may be operated
or hosted by utilities, solar developers, property owners,
schools, nonprofits or others. In its purest form, the
concept leads to ownership of the facility by those who buy
shares or units in a project.
The owners gain various benefits from the project, most
notably clean energy at stable pricing over a long term.
They or their financial partners also might gain economic
benefit through tax credits or other incentives.
In some states, like Massachusetts, virtual net metering
helps spur community solar. Virtual net metering allows
several households or
businesses to share the net
metering credits generated by a
facility although the solar panels
are somewhere off-site.
The National Renewable Energy
Laboratory estimates that 49 percent of U.S. households
cannot access solar for various reasons. Perhaps they are
renters or their rooftops are shaded. Community solar
opens up the possibility of extending solar to all consumers.
With solar prices dropping, the community solar concept
has taken off over the last five years. Community solar
grew 150 percent from 2013 to 2014 alone, according
to SEPA, which has identified 85 utility programs — both
public and investor-owned.
“I actually think that’s a very conservative figure. The co-
ops have been especially tricky to track as they often don’t
attract a lot of national attention with new programs. SEPA
is hoping to do some closer coordination with organizations
like APPA and NRECA so that we can ensure we have the
best data available to share with utilities,” said Becky
Campbell, SEPA senior research manager.
Community power and publicly owned power have proven
to be especially compatible, given their laser focus on the
customer. Not subject to the same regulatory burden as
investor-owned utilities, “public power utilities have been
a little more nimble at getting programs pulled together
through a fairly streamlined timeline,” Campbell said. n
Read more
Learn about rate
models for utilities
on page 20
Learn more
from Captain
Public Power on
the inside back
cover.

Community Solar Makes ParticipationAffordable in Delaware
Community solar has helped the Delaware Municipal Electric Corporation take strides toward meeting
the state renewable portfolio standard — but it’s done a lot more, too.
The joint action agency, which serves nine municipal utilities in Delaware, could have purchased
renewable energy credits to meet the RPS. But it wanted to use the RPS to bring solar to communities,
according to Scott Lynch, energy services manager.
Moreover, DEMEC saw an opportunity to fill a “hole” in solar availability, Lynch said. Solar has largely
been a “doctor or lawyer” product; it’s not been affordable to the average person.
So DEMEC decided it was going to make solar affordable for all and found an innovative way to do so.
Each participant pays a low entry fee of $50 to join a community solar project. The money is used to
install energy efficiency measures that will benefit the entire community, such as LED street lighting.
The money saved through the energy efficiency benefits everyone in the community, even if they don’t
participate in the community solar project, Lynch said.
DEMEC also set up the program so that it can accept financial donations from those who want to give
community solar an extra boost.
In addition, the community solar project offers its output below retail market rates. The program is
able to keep costs down because the community solar projects avoid several costs, such as the utility’s
need to buy SRECs and provide net metering credits.
As a result, the program offers blocks of solar to community participants at one cent less than they
would otherwise pay for electricity.
“Because we have all of these savings, we buy down the cost of the system for the customer,” Lynch
said. “If you do the math, in just over four years, participation pays for itself at a faster rate than if a
customer owned the system, and there is no maintenance.”
In addition, the approach is so administratively easy the cost is too small to measure, he said.
The approach turns the table for solar. Typically, solar is a premium product. But by factoring in true
system costs and savings, DEMEC has found an innovative way bring the cost below market. n
A 15-MW solar project in Milford, Delaware, was completed in 2012. The Delaware
Municipal Electric Corporation purchases all the power generated by the project.
Photo courtesy of DEMEC.

Resources from APPA
APPA wants to help you be prepared to handle the widespread
interest in solar. We’ve put together some tools and templates
to help.
You can access the resources listed below at PublicPower.org
under Topics/Distributed Resources.
• Solar DG Key Messages
Talking points for utilities to adapt and use to educate
customers, board and council members,
media and policymakers about solar DG.
• Making Solar Work for You
Blog post by Michele Suddleson,
APPA’s DEED program director, on
the four common business models —
purchased power, utility ownership,
customer engagement and community
solar — public power utilities are
using to offer solar to customers. The
blog summarizes a DEED book, Solar
Engagement Options for Public Power
Utilities.
• Distributed Generation:
A Guidebook for Public Power
Utilities
New APPA book that presents an
overview of small-scale energy supply
systems — thermal, renewable, fuel
cell and energy storage technologies —
and discusses how utilities can craft a
strategic response and follow a five-step
process to prepare for a full range of
potential outcomes from DG integration.
• Distributed Generation:
An Overview of Recent Policy and
Market Developments
APPA white paper examines how
utilities can encourage DG development
without unduly burdening other
customers or adversely impacting utility
operations and fiscal stability.
• Distributed Generation Issue Brief
Backgrounder for policymakers describes the basics of DG and
summarizes Congressional activity and APPA’s position.
• Community Solar Case Studies
APPA’s Public Power Daily and Public Power Weekly include
multiple feature stories on community solar projects of various
sizes implemented by public power utilities and joint action
agencies around the country.
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It is a special landmark
time in our organization.
This year, the American
Public Power Association
is celebrating its 75th
anniversary as a national
organization.
Our 75th anniversary is
an opportunity to look
back at the roots laid by
our founders. It’s an opportunity to reflect on what we
as public power have achieved in the face of tremendous
challenges over the years. We’ve emerged from many
battles stronger and more successful than ever. We won
because we came together and leveraged our strength in
numbers. We focused on the public good.
Our tenacity, our resilience, and our strength come from
Let’s Give the Gift of Electricity to Save Lives:
Fund a Solar Suitcase and Dispel the Darkness
By Paula DiFonzo
Immediate Past Board Chair, APPA and CEO, New Braunfels Utilities, Texas
our purpose and vision founded and grounded in our
community service and community-owned principles.
And here we are today, serving one in seven of America’s
electricity customers in more than 2,000 towns and cities.
Even as we celebrate our successes and prepare to take
on new challenges, we want to think beyond ourselves, to
those who are less privileged.
APPA saw our 75th anniversary as an opportunity to give
to a worthy charitable cause relevant to our core mission.
After much exploring, we identified We Care Solar, a global
project that powers the less privileged.
We Care Solar is a nonprofit organization founded by an
OB-GYN and energy educator to save the lives of mothers
and newborns in developing countries. Maternal mortality
accounts for 300,000 deaths a year in developing
countries. Many deaths occur because sporadic electricity
impairs the operation of surgical wards, delivery wards,
Nurse Christine Wanyana poses
with a Solar Suitcase at Bussi
Health Centre 3 on Bussi Island
in Uganda. (Photo by Jake Lyell).
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essential hospital equipment and hospital communications.
So We Care Solar designed a compact solar electric system
that fits in a suitcase. The portable solar suitcase includes
solar panels, a battery, charge controller, outlets, and LED
lights. It can also be expanded to power larger medical
equipment. We Care Solar provides training, monitoring and
on-site servicing of the solar suitcases through staff and
local field partners. Suitcases are deployed in 24 countries
including Haiti, Liberia, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Malawi.
This year, We Care Solar plans to expand its programs into
Ethiopia, Tanzania and the Philippines.
Solar suitcases have saved many lives and prevented health
complications. Improved lighting is essential for health
workers to treat patients and allows emergency C-sections
to be performed at night. Solar-powered cell phones allow
nurses to alert medical teams when obstetric emergencies
arise. With blood bank refrigeration, lifesaving transfusions
APPA’s new online system makes applying a breeze!
Find out how reliable your utility is.
Submit your Reliable Public Power Provider (RP3) application by September 30.
RP3-designated utilities enjoy many benefits, including:
• National recognition as a safe and reliable utility
• Cost savings on workers compensation and insurance
• Improved bond ratings
• Community respect and appreciation for
keeping the lights on
For information on RP3 and to apply online,
visit www.PublicPower.org/RP3 or contact
RP3@PublicPower.org.
33-Application Period Ad_half page.pdf 1 3/23/15 3:05 PM
occur without delay.
The cost of a solar suitcase is about $1,500. The cost of
deploying the suitcase — including shipping and training
people in how to use it — is about $2,500.
With the budget we have, APPA can fund the deployment
of two solar suitcases. I urge you to give as you can to
supplement public power’s contribution. Information about
how to give is on APPA’s website at PublicPower.org/
GiveSolar.
The public power spirit of giving — whether in our
communities around the country where we serve diverse
customers, or in parts of the world that need the gift of
power — is who we are.
As Dr. Seuss says, “Unless someone like you cares a whole
awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” So thank
you for caring and for considering giving to those in need. n

The 74.79 kW Phinney Ridge Project is the state’s largest
community solar installation. Housed on a historic building
and at the Woodland Park Zoo, the project went online in
October 2014 and has sold out its 2,671 shares.
The latest installation, a 25.92 kW project, began operat-
ing late last year in the Capitol Hill EcoDistrict, and is also
sold out with 925 shares. The project is a testing ground for
sustainability in a densely populated urban area. The solar
panels are installed on a 30-unit affordable housing apart-
ment building.
Suzanne DuRard, who manages the community solar
program at Seattle City Light, sees many advantages to the
program.
The low $150/share cost of entry allows a broad segment
of customers to participate, not just those with disposable
income. This aligns with the city’s social goals, she said.
“And because those community solar participants are see-
ing annual credits on their electric bills, they are also poten-
tially more open to messages about conservation, as they look
for ways to make those credits go farther,” DuRard added.
Seattle can claim early market entry. But so can the state
of Colorado, which has developed into a kind of hub for com-
munity solar, in part because it is home to the Solar Gardens
Institute, which provides advocacy for community solar.
Colorado is also home to the company often credited with
getting the community solar concept off the ground, Clean
Energy Collective, which helps utilities develop community
solar. One of the original developers of the community solar
concept, CEC, led the way working out many of the gnarly
legal and economic issues associated with developing the
projects.
“Community solar is a simple concept. But it is very dif-
ficult to implement,” said Paul Spencer, CEC founder and
president. Among other things, projects often must carefully
navigate tax code and Securities & Exchange Commission
regulation.
CEC’s first community solar project was built in 2010.
The 338-panel array in western Colorado was “subscribed
out overnight to 19 different people,” Spencer said. The
company now works with 18 utility partners in eight states
and has 51 projects to its credit. These include two publicly
owned projects.
The Colorado Springs Utilities Community Solar Array is
a 497-kW project with 2,210 panels, located on four acres of
utility-owned property adjacent to a substation in Colorado
Springs. The first part of the two-part project was completed
Continued from page 10

in December 2012. The second part will be
built when the first is sold out.
Fort Collins Utilities Community Solar Ar-
ray is a 620-kW project with 2,000 panels on
a six-acre brownfield site. The project was ini-
tially going to be 330-kW. But early demand
prompted CEC to nearly double the final sys-
tem capacity. CEC expects it to be finished this
spring.
Several other municipal utilities, coopera-
tives, joint action agencies and publicly owned
utilities have since either installed community
solar or are on the way to doing so.
The Delaware Municipal Electric Corpora-
tion has several projects developed or up and
running. The projects are successful, in part,
because of a unique approach the joint action
agency took.
These include:
• A 10-MW Dover SUN Park. The first com-
munity solar project in the region, it supplies
enough power for over 1,700 homes.
• The 15-MW community solar farm in the
city of Milford. Built on 80 acres in Kent Coun-
ty, Delaware. The $50 million project complet-
ed construction in the fourth quarter of 2012.
• The 230-kW McKees Solar Park is on a
former landfill in Newark, Delaware. The city
invested $600,000 in the project.
Meanwhile, Austin Energy in June negoti-
ated an agreement for a 3 MW community so-
lar installation. The request for proposals drew
healthy bidding — about a dozen companies
offered more than 20 proposals, according to
Danielle Murray, the utility’s manager of solar
energy services.
A private company, chosen from a request for
proposals, will build the ground-mounted proj-
ect near a substation on a 26-acre site owned
by the utility. The Austin project includes solar
storage to provide voltage and reactive power
that will help modulate the renewable energy.
The project “will barely begin to scratch the
demand” for community solar in Austin, Mur-
ray said. Austin is known for its green leanings.
But the city also has many shady heritage trees
that prevent rooftop solar.
Austin Energy views community solar as
a service “that will improve customer service
and satisfaction,” Murray said.
Several other publicly owned utilities share
Austin’s view. Projects are operating or being
developed in a diverse array of cities: Kalona,
Iowa; Orlando, Florida; San Antonio, Texas;
Springfield, Missouri and Los Angeles and Palo
Alto, California, to name a few.
“We’re really seeing growth all over, but
what’s interesting is that we’re seeing growth
in states that aren’t widely recognized for past
solar developments. Programs have started to
emerge in places like Iowa and Indiana. States
that have some form of enabling legislation
continue to be popular — Minnesota, Mas-
sachusetts, Colorado,” said SEPA’s Campbell.
So five years after the U.S. saw its first com-
munity solar gardens spring up, the seeds are
still spreading, and the full bloom has yet to
come. When it does, publicly owned power will
be known as one of its master gardeners. n
Read more
See page 28 to read about customers
at Colorado Springs Utilities
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Share this infographic with
your customers.To request
a digital version, email
News@PublicPower.org

Selecting from the
distributed generation
rate menu
By Laura D’Alessandro
Integrated Media Editor, APPA
Healthy
Choices

Choosing the best distributed
generation rate design for your utility
depends largely on your community.

no standard, according to a whitepaper from ICF
International. The paper said calculations used
to find the true value of solar are “all over the
map.” The consulting firm proposed its own ap-
proach to fully capture the value of distributed
generation of all types, which includes assessing
avoided energy generation, avoided or deferred
generation capacity, avoided transmission and
distribution losses and capacity, grid support
services provided by the generation and envi-
ronmental value as an emissions-free source.
The Austin Algorithm
Austin Energy is one public power utility that
has put its own formula and number on the
true value of solar. The utility worked with
Clean Power Research to develop a rate that
incorporates six value components. Similar
to what ICF found in surveying traditional
value of solar components, Austin included
in its algorithm loss savings, energy savings,
generation capacity savings, fuel price hedge,
transmission and distribution capacity savings,
and environmental benefits.
Through Austin’s program, customers are
billed for their total energy use at the retail elec-
tric rate and then receive credit from the utility
for their solar production at the rate calculated
through the algorithm. Austin implemented
this rate structure in 2012. ICF suggests utili-
ties using such calculations evaluate them fre-
quently — Austin has done so annually since
adopting the rate structure.
In reviewing its rate structure for solar cus-
tomers, Austin found that the value of solar has
fluctuated annually due to natural gas futures
prices, which impact the calculation on energy
savings and fuel price hedging. In 2014, Austin
modified its review to address concerns about
the tariff’s volatility. Natural gas futures prices
are now evaluated at five-year rolling averages.
Before adopting this methodology, Austin used
a net metering rate structure.
Nothing but net metering
Utilities more commonly choose — or at least
start out with — net metering as the rate
structure for their solar customers. Net metering
simply credits customers for the amount of
energy they produce beyond their consumption
and export to the grid.
In Lakeland, Florida, for example, the pub-
lic power utility operated under a standard net
metering tariff for several years. Customers with
solar installations
were charged for each
kWh they received
from the utility on a
monthly basis, but
also credited for each
kWh they sent to the
utility, and the credit
was the same as the
energy charge.
Through routine
cost of service and
pricing analysis,
For many utilities, solar is all about
the customer. Customers are inundated with
flyers and mailers that say they should go solar
today — and that they can even save money
by doing so. As a result, many customers want
solar, and utilities have to facilitate their needs.
What customers often don’t understand is just
how that investment affects their bill.
Thus, as distributed generation, particularly
rooftop and community solar, grows at an in-
creasing rate, utilities must more frequently
confront the question of how best to value its
output for customers.
But like any decision a municipality makes,
the answer truly hinges on what’s best for the
community and is determined by its character
and needs. Factors include locally specific costs
and benefits, applicable subsidies and the de-
gree of cost shifting among utility customers,
all of which must be kept in balance with paro-
chial interests and customer perspectives. With
so many variables, many of which are based
on public perception, communities can expect
considerable debate.
Looking for true value
Some utilities may choose to simply value solar
generation at the same retail price that it sells
power to its customer — about 12 cents per
kilowatt-hour as of February 2015, according
to the Energy Information Administration. But
some experts would argue that the retail price for
existing generation and that of new distributed
solar generation don’t match.
Many factors can go into calculating what is
considered the true value assigned to the solar
energy that customers are producing. Common
factors considered include the energy generation
avoided at other sources, avoided or deferred
generation capacity from
other sources, avoided
transmission and distri-
bution losses, grid sup-
port services, and finan-
cial hedging. Other, less
straightforward factors
include social values and
environmental costs and
benefits.
As to which factors
utilities should include in
their calculation, there is
What is net metering?
Net metering is a rate mechanism that credits customers
for the amount of energy they produce beyond what
they use; it pays them for what they export to the grid.
Read more about net metering on page 34.
Finding the True Value of
Solar, an infographic, is available
on PublicPower.org under
News>Public Power Magazine

Lakeland found that the standard net metering
structure it was using did not properly align
fixed revenue and fixed costs. So, the utility
changed the structure.
Under the new tariff, which is set to take
effect for new PV customers in October 2015,
owners or leasers of solar photovoltaic systems
will pay a separate demand pricing rate. They
will still be credited at the regular retail energy
rate, though that rate will be lower. The tariff
includes what is called a demand charge. For
Lakeland, that charge is based on the maxi-
mum, 30-minute integrated kilowatt demand
for the month, which is meant to represent the
capacity that the utility needs on standby to
serve the customer.
Pay to play
The demand charge employed by Lakeland is
one way for utilities to recoup the costs of doing
business with solar customers. The charge
enables solar customers to continue to receive
billing credits that are the same as their energy
charge, but they will pay a higher proportion of
their overall cost to the utility.
Similarly, Santee Cooper in South Carolina
added a demand charge to its net metering pro-
gram. Santee Cooper’s solar customers pay a
$24-per-month charge as well as an on-peak
demand charge of $11.34/kW per month and
an off-peak demand charge of $4.85/kW per
month. Energy credits and energy charges are
also calculated at on-peak and off-peak rates.
Ratepayers react
While it would seem likely that ratepayers would
shy away from anything that would bring more
charges to their bills, utilities that have instituted
demand charges or calculated the value of solar
have encountered favorable results.
Lakeland Electric held a series of workshops
with community stakeholders before imple-
menting its demand charge. The reaction has
been positive, the utility said. It continues to
monitor the tariff’s performance and will make
changes as necessary.
Austin Energy’s program has been viewed fa-
vorably, especially within the solar community,
the utility said. Other utilities instituting similar
rate structures have used Austin’s structure as a
model. n
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Through the Sunglasses
Customer
Perspectives
on Community Solar

By Ethan Howland
Contributing Writer

Being geeky about energy, Di Graski and her
husband were disappointed when they found
out about 10 years ago that their home wasn’t
ideal for solar panels.
Then when their utility — Colorado Springs
Utilities — started a community solar pilot proj-
ect, the couple pounced and became one of the
first to sign up to buy electricity from two pan-
els at the Venetucci solar farm, which
came online in late 2011.
“The panels were wisely situated
and we avoided the expenses related
to net metering,” Graski said. “We
were thrilled.”
So thrilled that Graski and her
husband signed up to buy the elec-
tricity from 11 more panels. The
community solar purchases essen-
tially cover all the electricity for their home and
hybrid car, Graski said.
Graski views her participation in the CSU
community solar program as a way to encour-
age a shift toward renewable energy in the
United States. “We want to be part of that group
that says we believe we can do it,” Graski said.
“We’re excited about the breakthroughs in the
technology.”
Nick Kittle, a residential customer who also
participates in the Venetucci solar farm, said his
interest in solar was spurred by a basic philoso-
phy about energy. “Clean energy was important
to me and my family,” he said.
But Kittle also believes that community so-
lar offers some practical advantages. He pointed
to his ability to hedge the risk that his electrici-
ty bills would increase over time. “This is about
doing what energy companies do at a personal
level: hedging your risk,” he said. “Fixing a por-
tion of your cost and knowing what it looks like
for 20 years.”
Through CSU’s community solar program,
Kittle entered into a 20-year contract for the
output from two panels at the Venetucci proj-
ect, which will have a roughly 10-year payback
period, he said.
Also, under the CSU community solar pro-
gram, residential customers can keep their
stake in the solar panels when they move, Kittle
said. And if a program participant decides the
program is no longer for them, they can sell
their share to someone else, he explained.
“It was transferable, which was a huge advan-
tage for us,” he said. “You could treat it like an
asset and sell it.”
Saving money is the main reason homeown-
ers consider buying “clean” energy, according to
a survey released in April that was conducted by
Zogby Analytics for SolarCity, a solar develop-
er, and Clean Edge, a research firm.
Eighty-two percent of the survey re-
spondents said they were primarily
motivated by lowering the electricity
costs when considering renewable
energy. About 34 percent said cutting
their environmental impact was their
top priority, according to the survey,
which let customers pick two top rea-
sons for considering renewables.
When asked about solar, 64 percent said sav-
ing money on their electric bill would have the
highest impact on their decision to install solar
panels.
Cost appears to be the top consideration for
homeowners, such as Graski and Kittle, but cus-
tomer concerns about the environment also play
a role in their decisions, according to the Solar
City survey. About 65 percent of Americans con-
sider environmental issues at least sometimes
when making big-ticket purchasing decisions
and 75 percent of respondents say they take at
Photo courtesy of SunShare.
“We want to be part of that group
that says we believe we can do it,”
Graski said. “We’re excited about the
breakthroughs in the technology.”

least some actions to help reduce greenhouse gas
emissions, according to the survey.
It’s not just homeowners jumping into com-
munity solar. Last year, Adams County, which
borders Denver, signed up to participate in a
community solar project developed by Sun-
Share, the same company that built the CSU so-
lar farms, according to Kittle, who is the coun-
ty’s performance, innovation and sustainability
manager.
For Adams County, the initial case for par-
ticipating in community solar was financial,
according to Kittle. The county was able to use
the solar energy to offset the electricity used at
seven county facilities that had especially high
demand charges. Cutting the demand charges
meant there was no upfront cost to joining the
community solar program offered by Xcel En-
ergy. The county expects to lower its electric bill
by about $300,000 over 20 years, Kittle said.
So how are utilities responding to the de-
mand for community solar? First, they are
quickly expanding their programs.
In Colorado, CSU is finishing up its 2-MW
pilot project, with SunShare building a final
500-kW facility under the program. The pilot
was open to residential customers and schools.
The utility is doubling the size of the pro-
gram and opening it up to all customer classes.
SunShare, which won a solicitation process, is
building the new capacity.
In California, the Sacramento Municipal
Utility District is also moving from a pilot phase
to a permanent program, according to Jim
Burke, manager of the utility’s SolarShares pro-
gram, which started in 2008 as one of the first
community solar programs in the United States.
Partly driven by demand from commercial
and industrial customers, SMUD plans to grow
the program to 75 MW by the end of the de-
cade, up from 1 MW now, according to Burke.
“I think it’s got huge potential,” he said.
In a sign of customer interest, the utility al-
ready has received tentative commitments on
about 9 MW from industrial customers, he said.
SMUD designed its community program
to make solar available to anyone, Burke said.
It’s less hassle than a rooftop system, the solar
shares stay with a customer when they move
and it runs on a month-to-month basis, allow-
ing customers to easily drop out of the program,
he said. Also, the program provides an option to
customers who want to support a faster deploy-
ment of solar energy, according to Burke.
Burke said that although customers paid
more for their electricity under the program, it
was fully subscribed within six months and has
never been less than 92 percent subscribed.
Based on a 2010 survey, SMUD found that
cost was not a main concern when customers
were considering signing up for the SolarShares
program, according to Burke. At 38 percent,
fighting global warming and protecting the envi-
ronment was the top reason for participating in
the program, followed by participating in solar
at 27 percent and encouraging solar production
at 13 percent. Only 7 percent of customers said
they wanted to save money. n
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Millions Stand Behind Solar Power
Americans strongly support solar and think there should be a
larger role for the technology in the United States energy mix,
according to recent polls.
More Americans – 79 percent – think the United States should
put an increased emphasis on solar energy than any other power
source, according to a poll conducted in March by Gallup News
Service, a polling firm. In a sign that solar’s popularity may be
growing, 76 percent of Americans thought solar should get more
emphasis, according to a similar poll two years ago.
In contrast, 70 percent of the survey’s respondents thought wind
should get more emphasis, followed by natural gas at 55 percent,
oil at 41 percent, nuclear power at 35 percent and coal at
28 percent.
Another recent survey found similar attitudes toward solar.
When asked which energy sources were most important to the
future of the United States, solar came out on top with half of
the respondents selecting that fuel source, followed by wind at
42 percent, natural gas at 33 percent and energy efficiency at
25 percent, according to the results of a survey released in April
(respondents to the question could pick three top choices).
The top four energy sources came in the same rank among all
regions of the country, according to the survey conducted for

SolarCity, a solar developer, and Clean Edge, a research firm.
The survey found that support for solar and wind was similar
across all age groups, while the enthusiasm for natural gas and
nuclear power was less strong among younger people. Only
1 percent of people in the 18-24 age group thought nuclear power
was most important for America’s future.
Eighty percent of respondents said the United States should rely
more on solar, more than any other energy sources, according to a
poll conducted in December for Center for American Progress, a
liberal advocacy group. n
736609_TEA.indd 1 5/30/15 2:54 AM

and educate member utilities, facilitate shar-
ing of concerns, assuage fears, and disseminate
information.
During his term as APPA board chair, Hunt-
er plans to focus on three things — leadership,
strategic plan implementation, and growth in
membership.
Cultivating leaders
Leadership is key, explains Hunter, quoting
John F. Kennedy who said, “Knowledge and
leadership go hand in hand.” Hunter believes
that people who know what’s going on tend to
be the leaders. He wants every APPA member
to be confident enough to be a leader because
they know their community and their business
best. “We need to educate our communities. We
need to take on and solve the problems of our
communities. That’s leadership.”
APPA gives members the knowledge and
confidence to be leaders — what seems daunt-
ing for members to take on becomes easier with
the support of APPA experts, as Hunter himself
has experienced. For example, APPA’s CEO Cli-
mate Change and Generation Policy Task Force
has already provided much guidance in prepar-
ing for the Clean Power Plan.
It’s especially been his privilege to work with
strong women in leadership, said Hunter. Caro-
lyn McNeil, former general manager of UAMPS,
was a wonderful mentor and leader early in his
career. Today, he is honored to follow in the foot-
steps of Paula DiFonzo, CEO of New Braunfels
Utilities in Texas, who just completed her term
as board chair. He also looks forward to work-
ing closely with Sue Kelly, APPA’s first woman
president and CEO.
Offering direction and support for imple-
mentation of APPA’s strategic plan for 2016 -
2018, recently approved by the board, is another
of Hunter’s priorities for his term as board chair.
Membership growth is a third area of fo-
cus. “There are 2,000 public power utilities in
America and 1,400 are APPA members. I want
to help get the other 600 in,” he says. “APPA has
always been a great organization but in recent
years has been elevated to new levels of quality,
accountability, and innovation.”
APPA’s high-quality conferences and educa-
tional events such as the CEO Roundtable and
the popular Reliable Public Power Provider pro-
gram are examples of the leadership opportuni-
ties the association offers, he said.
“My vision is that APPA be the nation’s pre-
mier electricity association. I want every mem-
ber of Congress to come to us first to get answers
to their electricity questions.”
Making the most of it
With these lofty goals, it’s going to be a
challenging year as Hunter juggles leadership
of UAMPS and APPA. However he “feels up to
it” and knows he can accomplish a lot, thanks
to the support of staff at both associations. And
thanks to the backing of his “wonderful life
partner, Tana.”
“Tana lets me be the workaholic I like to be. I
use weekends to catch up on all the work I can’t
get done on weekdays,” says Hunter.
As much as he loves his work, Hunter does
not let it get in the way of making the most of
life. He likes to retreat to his home in a rural
part of central Utah to recharge. His dogs are
great friends and he enjoys walks and hikes
with them. He’s also into bird watching. Hunter
“reads a lot for work and pleasure.” He’s read-
ing The Men Who United the States by Simon
Winchester and The Sellout by Paul Beatty. And
he “loves a good beer.”
Hunter looks forward to his year as APPA
board chair and is deeply appreciative of the
support of APPA and UAMPS staff, board and
members.
“We’re all the same people and we do the
same things but we do them differently. That’s
what APPA represents and I’m looking forward
to learning and contributing,” said Hunter. n
In June 2015, Doug Hunter, CEO of the Utah
Associated Municipal Power Systems, was appointed
board chair of the American Public Power Association.
Hunter talked to Public Power magazine about his
career in public power, priorities for APPA, and his
philosophies on leadership and life.
Doug Hunter started his career in public
power in April 1979 as assistant resource analyst
for the Intermountain Consumer Power Associ-
ation, a joint action agency for rural cooperative
and municipal electric utilities.
“I quickly got infatuated with public power,”
said Hunter. “I didn’t even know it existed. But
the not-for-profit, community service aspects hit
a tone with me.”
In October 1980, the cooperatives and public
power utilities in the Intermountain Consumer
Power Association split up to build their own
power plants. UAMPS was formed and Hunter
became the municipal resource analyst. As
UAMPS grew, Hunter took on the roles of chief
operating officer and then assistant general man-
ager. In 1995, he became the general manager.
Under Hunter’s leadership, UAMPS has
grown from 21 to 45 members in Utah, Arizona,
California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon
and Wyoming.
Power in discussion
Hunter sees his UAMPS experience translating
to APPA in his ability to facilitate discussion
between members of different types and sizes.
“APPA is like a large joint action agency at the
national level. APPA can do more to facilitate re-
gional discussions among public power utilities
given its leadership role and national perspec-
tive,” Hunter said.
Hunter sees APPA’s staff expertise as a great
strength and would like to facilitate these ex-
perts spending more time in the field, visiting
members and sharing knowledge and experi-
ence. “Members are thrilled when APPA visits. I
used to visit every UAMPS member at least once
a year and now I have someone else do it be-
cause I don’t have as much time,” he said.
Hunter believes APPA has already done a
great job and can do even more to organize
The Many Dimensions
of Leadership
A Conversation with Doug Hunter, APPA Board Chair, 2015-2016
By Meena Dayak, Vice President, Integrated Media & Communications, APPA
Read more about Hunter’s
work with UAMPS on
PublicPower.org

highly inflated price derived from net metering, a primitive
and unsophisticated relic of the age of dumb prices.
The effect of the status quo on net metering is to
require consumers to pay a higher price for a designated
technology — distributed solar PV — and provide less
market opportunity for other, more efficient producers. This
is a point that was noted in a recent MIT study on “Future
of Solar,” which stated that solar DG should not be given
a price advantage over larger-scale, more efficient solar,
and that pricing solar based on kilowatt hours produced,
rather than stimulating solar energy could, in fact, impede
its development. The logic is quite simple. Subsidizing
without end a product that is inefficient and not competitive
with other sources of comparable energy rewards lack
of productivity and provides absolutely no incentive for
improvement.
Utility-proposed alternatives to net metering would
certainly not deprive solar generators of the right to
compete. In fact, quite the opposite is the case. Utilities
can enable solar PV to participate in the market on a fair,
relatively level and open basis.
Many utilities are prepared to purchase any energy
produced by distributed solar that is in excess of what is
required on the premises of the solar host. In fact, this
would provide some competitive advantage to distributed
solar installations because it would provide an assurance
of purchase without asking for a reciprocal commitment of
guaranteed delivery.
If utilities pay all energy producers, large or small, central
or distributed, at the locational market price, they have the
advantage of bundling both transmission costs or savings
and energy costs. It is a rather level playing field for all
generators, with a slight advantage to distributed solar
generation because it assures purchase without assured
delivery. n
Read the full blog post, Net Metering: The Dark Cloud
in a Sunny Sky, on blog.publicpower.org/sme
Solar photovoltaic technology can realize its full potential
as a distributed generation resource and benefit all parties,
especially electricity customers, only with updated pricing
policies.
As solar takes hold with consumers, some vendors,
accustomed to taking advantage of flaws in tariff structures
to enhance their profits, paint utilities as the villains who
want to keep the sun from shining on their customers.
These vendors are seizing on the arcane nature of
ratemaking to mislead the media and the public about costs
and prices.
In reality, the growth of solar is impeded not by utilities but
by well-intentioned but flawed policies and rate structures
that have evolved with little or no thought in many states
and fail to appropriately price the value and output of
distributed solar.
Distributed solar generation has some very real benefits
and long-term potential. The marginal costs of producing
this energy are zero. Carbon emissions from the actual
process of producing the energy itself, without taking the
secondary effects into consideration, are also zero. The
costs of solar PV panels have declined significantly in recent
years, adding to its potential long-term viability, although
as a recent study has pointed out, those reduced panels
costs are being accompanied by increased installer charges
which effectively preclude consumers from seeing the full
savings associated with the declining costs.
In its current, most common configuration, however, solar
PV has some drawbacks — it is intermittent, requiring
backup from other generation sources. Its energy value
is entirely dependent on when it is produced and its
capacity value, given its intermittent availability is, at best,
marginal.
To fully develop solar as a cost-effective energy resource,
it is imperative to provide pricing that offers incentives
for productivity and reliability. The objective should be
price signals that incentivize efficiency and productivity,
that result in cost savings for consumers, and that are not
socially regressive.
Net energy metering reduces the competitiveness of the
market. What some in the solar industry are seeking
is not the right to compete, but rather the right to be
compensated at arbitrarily high levels justified only by the
Net Metering:
A Cautionary Tale
By Ashley Brown
Executive Director, Harvard Electricity Policy Group

Public Power Utilities Use Variety of
Distributed Generation Rate Designs
By Paul Ciampoli, News Director, APPA
WASHINGTON REPORT
Anew report from the American Public Power Association details how
a number of public power utilities have adopted new rate designs to serve
distributed generation customers, with the designs either supplementing
net metering by recouping more of their fixed costs through fixed charges
or offering comprehensive alternatives to net metering.
APPA’s “Rate Design for Distributed Generation” report examines rate
design options for solar and other DG. It discusses how utilities have
educated customers about new rates, as well as how DG and non-DG
customers responded.
“While the rate design options have some drawbacks and might not be
technically feasible for all utilities, they offer the industry new models that
account for the rate impacts of distributed generation,” the report states.
The report was prepared by Paul Zummo, manager of policy research
and analysis at APPA.
“The report offers a variety of examples of how public power utilities
are taking a number of innovative approaches to net metering alternatives
and underscores the point that one size does not fit all when it comes to
rate design and distributed generation,” Zummo said.
The use of DG, particularly rooftop solar photovoltaic, is growing fast,
the report goes on to say, noting that as of October 2014, just under 8,000
megawatts of solar capacity was installed on residential and business
rooftops across the U.S.
“The growth of DG has been spurred by environmental concerns and
economic considerations. Federal and state tax incentives are a driving
force behind solar PV installations and can together cover up to
70 percent of the total cost of solar panels in some states,” the report
said. Declining solar panel prices have also fueled growth in rooftop
solar. “Utility rate structures for distributed generation have provided a
significant benefit to solar customers,” the report adds.
The report notes that most U.S. utilities use net metering to measure
and compensate customers for the generation they produce.
“However net metering has several shortcomings and results in non-
DG customers subsidizing DG customers,” the report said, pointing out
that utilities have options other than traditional net metering.
Net metering “causes revenue shortfalls for utilities, and creates a
situation where one class of customers is subsidizing another,” Zummo
writes. “In the long run, this is untenable, especially as more customers
install DG systems. Utilities should consider modified approaches to net
metering, or completely new billing arrangements.”
Many public power utilities have adopted new rate designs to serve
DG customers. “Some of these rate designs supplement net metering by
recouping more of their fixed costs through fixed charges, while other de-
signs provide comprehensive alternatives to net metering,” the report said.
Case studies
The report includes a section that details how a number of public power
utilities have adopted different rate designs to serve DG customers.
The case studies looked at the experiences of Austin Energy (Texas),
Lincoln Electric System (Nebraska), Lakeland Electric (Florida), Sacramento
Municipal Utility District (California), City of Whitehall (Wisconsin),
Santee Cooper (South Carolina), and Concord Light (Massachusetts).
The case studies show that these public utilities have taken a variety
of paths in terms of net metering alternatives.
The report notes that Austin Energy is the only utility in the U.S. to
have implemented a value of solar, or VOS, rate.
VOS is a measure of electric system attributes such as transmission
costs, generation costs, environmental externalities, and other inputs,
and of how distributed solar energy positively and negatively affects each.
“VOS is an effort to associate a quantifiable benefit with each kWh of
distributed solar exported to the grid. Presumably, that number would
become the kWh rate at which solar DG would be compensated,” the
report explained.
“VOS represents a departure from net metering. Austin Energy’s VOS
rate is based on a ‘buy-all, sell-all’ approach where the DG customer buys
all of the electricity it consumes from the distribution utility at one rate,
and then separately sells all of its distributed generation output to the
utility at the VOS rate,” the report noted.
For its part, Lakeland, which has been operating under a traditional
net metering tariff for several years, decided to modify its net metering
program and establish a new tariff that incorporates a residential demand
charge. The move came after the utility engaged in a rate analysis.
The report notes that the purpose of the modified tariff is to better
align revenue to costs. “Residential demand charges will ensure solar PV
customers receive a billing credit for surplus energy they provide to the
utility, while paying a fixed charge for demands they place on the utility
system, especially during peak hours,” the report said.
Utilities can’t afford to take “wait and see” approach
A key point made in the report is that utilities cannot afford to sit on the
sidelines when it comes to DG and rate design issues.
“We are beyond the initial stages of DG,” the report said. “More and
more customers are installing DG, and there is no sign that this trend will
slow in the immediate future. Utilities can no longer afford to take a wait
and see approach when it comes to rate design, nor should they assume
that their existing rate design — especially a net metering design that was
adopted before the escalation in the number of DG installations — will
suffice to recover the utility’s revenue requirements and send good price
signals to its customers.” n
Read More
Find the full report on publicpower.org under
Topics>Distributed Resources.

ENGINEERING
No industry is immune to disruption and distributed en-
ergy technologies could be one of the biggest disruptions to
the electric utility industry. Public power utilities will be
better positioned to meet this challenge if they proactively shape their
approach rather than reactively respond to it.
Developing a DG strategy that aligns with customer needs and
desires is particularly important for public power utilities as they are
owned by customers and have community-based business models.
A public power utility may face political pressure to encourage DG
even if it reduces revenue or affects operational stability. The utility
must fully understand the impacts of DG on its system and finances
and be able to explain those impacts to its board, city council and
community.
While DG is growing and impacting some utility markets, it is na-
scent and causing minimal disruption in others. Some in the industry
question whether the current attention indicates future proliferation
of DG or simply the latest trend. Regardless, DG penetration is likely
to continue, driven by factors that vary by state, service territory, and
customer type.
Mass appeal
DG appeals to customers because it offers more choices. Residential
and commercial customers are assessing DG alternatives for environ-
mental, economic, reliability, power quality, or self-sufficiency benefits.
Additionally, the upfront cost may be very low, especially for solar
technologies. Cost declines can be attributed to economies of scale,
lower equipment costs, technology efficiencies, reduction in soft costs,
and the commercial maturing of third-party providers.
In the past, policy-driven economic support for DG — especially
solar — and motivation to use renewable energy for environmental
reasons led to the expansion of the DG market. While supportive poli-
cies remain, DG’s value proposition is tied more to economics — tariff
savings for customers, as well as perceived value of enhanced reliabil-
ity and power quality.
Customer control
Rate design and customers’ desire for more control over their energy
supply will drive DG’s future growth as much as technology costs
and regulation.
Well-designed, utility-owned DG can help the utility or system
operator improve grid reliability by providing ancillary services like
support for voltage and frequency, reactive power, and fast-start
ramping. As independent, not-for-profit entities, public power utilities
have the opportunity to include distributed resources in their genera-
tion fleet and develop solutions fully aligned with customer needs. All
else being equal, the lower cost of financing (because of high credit
ratings) can allow public power to offer cost-competitive DG solutions
compared to those that third parties can offer.
Come Out on the Front End of Distributed Generation
By Ursula Schryver, Vice President, Education and Customer Programs, APPA
While public policy still plays an important role in the support
of DG, particularly photovoltaic DG, utilities must understand the
drivers of DG and the impacts and opportunities that may arise from
increased DG adoption. As DG’s value proposition increases, so too do
the prospects for a wide range of financial, planning, and operational
impacts on electric utilities, which magnify with increasing levels of
DG on a given utility’s system. n
Read more:
Download the Distributed Generation
Guidebook executive summary from
PublicPower.org or order the book in the APPA
product store.
725042_Krenz.indd 1 12/12/14 11:51 PM

Physical security standards are evolving and sharing is increasing between industry players, but the goal remains
the same: to secure the most critical assets and primary control centers. Any generation assets, whether centralized,
remote or distributed — think community solar installations — can and should be secured. Utilities can take steps to
minimize potential expenses due to vandalism, sabotage or malicious intrusions where these assets are located.
Three Steps To Keep Physical Assets Secure
By Puesh Kumar, Engineering & Operations Director, APPA
SECURITY
Deter and detect threats: The most effective
intrusion deterrents used by industry security
professionals include live video surveillance, smart
locks, access card systems, employee screening,
security fencing, locks, vehicle barriers, adequate
lighting, signage and guards.
Threat planning: To create an intrusion plan,
assess threats and vulnerabilities, identify security
measures, create a method for observation,
identify random security measures, and decide
how to respond and communicate accordingly.
Reach out: Get help with your security planning
form the North American Electric Reliability
Corp, the Electricity Sector Information Sharing
and Analysis Center and the American Public
Power Association. Visit ESISAC.com to register
for the information sharing portal and report
malicious activity at esisac@nerc.com or call the
24-hour hotline, 404/442-9780.
1
2
3
717604_Sterling.indd 1 22/10/14 2:07 PM

NYPA CEO Takes Helm of Research Group’s
Board at Pivotal Time
By Laura D’Alessandro, Integrated Media Editor, APPA
INNOVATION
The New York Power Authority’s
president and CEO has been select-
ed as leader of the Electric Power Re-
search Institute’s board of directors.
Gil Quiniones, who formerly
served as vice chair of EPRI’s board,
said he is looking forward to over-
seeing the organization’s research
while the industry is undergoing a
transformation.
“We’re in the midst of innovation
and rapid change in the industry,”
Quiniones said. “I think EPRI’s
role is to be that unbiased, inde-
pendent R&D entity to help in the
transformation.”
One issue at the forefront is distributed generation and its integra-
tion into the grid. EPRI has already released several studies on the issue.
Quiniones said the organization has “captured it perfectly.”
“Changes are happening and changes will be happening as we
transform this power grid into what’s called the integrated grid,” he said.
“Especially at the edge of the grid where you have distributed resources
— whether they’re solar, demand response, energy efficiency — all of
that is happening. EPRI’s role is to do the necessary R&D and technology
innovation to enable that.”
EPRI was created in 1965 after a massive blackout in the Northeast
left 30 million people without power. Since then, the institute has been
looking for innovation through researching a range of issues that change
with the times and technology. And that research, Quiniones said, is not
for the benefit of the utility business, but rather for the people it serves.
“EPRI is a great institution — its mission in the end is really for the
benefit of the public,” Quiniones said in an interview. “This is what people
sometimes really miss about EPRI. People think it’s the R&D arm of the
industry, of the utilities, and therefore its work is about enhancing the
utilities. But really, EPRI’s mission is to do R&D in the electricity space for
the benefit of the public.”
Quiniones said EPRI’s work is even more relevant as the grid changes
and evolves with new technology, customer preferences and regulatory
changes.
NYPA has been leading distributed generation innovation, as well. The
utility is working on developing a laboratory devoted to energy technol-
ogy innovation and rapid deployment of smart-grid technology. NYPA
was also recently selected to participate in the first phase of the PY Prize
Community Microgrid Competition. n
R
DEED members
Fall cycle grant applications are due
August 15. For more information or
to apply visit publicpower.org/DEED
or contact us at
DEED@publicpower.org or
202/467-2960.
Access forward thinking.
Transcend commodity engineering.
For decades, the experts at Leidos have helped
utilities optimize operations and prepare for
what’s next. Our solutions in system planning, grid
engineering, and Smart Grid as a Service transform
your utility, with the future always in mind.
leidos.com/activate
Activate Tomorrow, Today.
Lance Anderson
Project Engineer
749427_Leidos.indd 1 27/05/15 12:35 PM

A rural community in North Carolina, Kings Mountain, has owned and
operated its own utility system for more than 100 years and now serves
about 6,000 electric, natural gas and water/sewer customers. A former tex-
tile area on the North and South Carolina borders, Kings Mountain has
developed a successful formula that combines technology and a progressive
outlook to attract a mix of new industry.
The city’s electric, water and natural gas services are monitored and
managed utilizing an advanced metering infrastructure system for assis-
tance. The city’s leadership determined that the rollout of these technolo-
gies would be open and transparent to make sure the community not only
accepted the new technology, but also welcomed it.
“About four years ago, the city of Kings Mountain evaluated its then-
manual meter reading system. With one supervisor and three meter read-
ers, the data collection was accurate with a very low error rate. However,
by reading each meter only once a month, the utility did not have suf-
ficient usage data on hand to respond to high bill complaints or questions
from customers in a manner that was acceptable to the city,” said Marilyn
Sellers, city manager in Kings Mountain.
“To provide city staff and customers with more useful consumption
data, as well as to improve cash flow for the utility, we evaluated the
advanced metering systems suitable for utilities of our size,” said Holly
Black, an engineering and compliance specialist with the city. “We con-
ferred with our fellow members of ElectriCities of North Carolina and the
American Public Power Association. We visited several AMI installations
across the Southeast. Ultimately, we selected the AMI solution from the
Leidos Engineering and Elster Team.”
Kings Mountain uses Smart Grid as a Service, a fully hosted and man-
aged solution provided by Leidos that is built on the Elster EnergyAxis
AMI system.
After working through a detailed pilot project, Kings Mountain fully
deployed AMI for the electric and natural gas meters by January 2015. Full
deployment of the advanced water meters will take several more months.
“We are extremely excited as to what the end result will bring for us,” said
Jean Wyte, the billing director for the city.
With the deployment of Leidos’ Smart Grid as a Service and the Elster
AMI system, the staff of the Kings Mountain Energy and Water Depart-
ment said it is working more efficiently and finding it much easier to an-
swer questions from customers. “Our customer service representatives can
call up on the utility web portal very detailed data covering 13 months of
usage, correlated with weather data for each day,” Sellers said. “We can
help customers understand what was happening at certain times of the
month to drive up their charges, which was particularly valuable during
this past winter when temperatures were unusually low.”
In addition to the web portal for utility personnel, Kings Mountain
maintains a web-based smart meter portal through which customers may
log in to view their account history and usage data.
“With data being collected at 15-minute intervals 24/7, we are now
Making Advanced Metering Infrastructure
Work for a Small Utility
By Susan Ryba, Hometown Connections
RESOURCES
able to engage in a very positive dialog with our residential and com-
mercial customers,” said Dennis Wells, water resources director. “For
example, along with explaining days of higher cost usage, we can look
at the data and detect when water lines may be leaking or heat pumps
short cycling. Ultimately, we are able to suggest solutions for helping our
customers better manage their energy costs.”
The Kings Mountain Energy Department maintains a very robust
SCADA system. The SCADA system coupled with the data from the
AMI system enables the utility to better pinpoint trouble spots and
improve its outage management capabilities.
As a region that has lost textile manufacturing, Kings Mountain views
advanced technology deployments as critical to its economic develop-
ment activities. For example, when the city decided to connect all of
its facilities — including electric substations and natural gas regulator
stations — with a fiber optic loop for data communications, it leased
its unused dark fiber to local businesses at very competitive rates, said
Mayor Rick Murphrey.
“Our community is very fortunate to be led by a city manager, mayor
and city council members who share an understanding about the valu-
able potential of new technologies,” said Nick Hendricks, energy services
director. “As a case in point, our leadership believed that by deploying
the AMI system, the energy department would be enhancing our mis-
sion to provide safe and reliable services at the lowest cost possible using
sound economic reasoning while protecting environmental resources.”
Hendricks said the city had three primary goals for the AMI system:
for it to pay for itself, to impose no rate increase on customers, and to en-
counter no reduction in personnel. “We are on track to achieve all three
of these goals,” he said. n
Ad Index
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Krenz & Company Inc..............................................www.krenzvent.com.................................................35
Leidos Corporation...............................................www.leidos.com/activate.............................................37
PhoneTree®
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Power Engineers..................................................www.powereng.com/pd.....................Inside Front Cover
Power System Engineering, Inc............................www.powersystem.org...............................................29
Solar Power International 2015...................www.solarpowerinternational.com.....................................39
Sterling Security Systems..................................www.sterlingpadlocks.com...........................................36
TEA - The Energy Authority.........................................www.teainc.org.....................................................31
Thomas & Betts...............................................www.tnb.com/stormhardening............Outside Back Cover
Utilismart Corporation..........................................www.utilismartcorp.com..............................................13

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Cedar Falls, Iowa
Cedar Falls Utilities was nationally recognized in
2014 when President Barack Obama visited to high-
light community broadband, but the Iowa utility has
been providing electric service for more than 100
years. Innovation has colored its history since long
before community broadband.
Meeting fast growing load is a challenge for many
utilities. In 1973, load in Cedar Falls
was growing at 7 percent per year. The
utility made a watershed decision in
1973 when it decided to partner with
an investor-owned utility that was
planning a new 600-megawatt gen-
eration plant in the state. Cedar Falls
invested in the plant and transmission
lines. The utility was the first munici-
pal utility in Iowa to partner with an
IOU in this way.
In Cedar Falls, the community un-
derstands and values the advantages of
public power. Community ownership
gives the utility a measure of control
over its own density — which is why
Cedar Falls owns not only its electric
utility, but also water, natural gas and
broadband. Delivering value to its com-
munity is how Cedar Falls measures its
success.
The utility completed a three-year
upgrade to its broadband system in
2013 that replaced the 1995 system.
The upgrade made gigabit Internet ser-
vice available throughout its footprint
and became Iowa’s first gigabit city.
The city’s next project is community solar, slated for
construction this fall. Depending on the level of inter-
est, Cedar Falls expects to build 500 to 1,500 kW of
solar capacity through the project. n

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