UW Community Solar Economic Impact

This month, the Urban Infrastructure Lab at the University of Washington published an “Economic Impact Analysis of Community Solar Programs for the State of Washington”. The study looks at third-party-owned community solar, i.e.,mostly corporate-owned community solar installations where a third party owns the project (neither the utility nor the customer) and the public is given the ability to subscribe to the solar energy service of the third party through their utility bill. Corporate-owned community solar facilities are often arranged through the lease of land, but rooftop array development is also a possibility. Thus, according to the study, solar growth increases the opportunity for payments from corporate developers and owners of the arrays to landowners of rural, commercial, and industrial property.

The study envisions three growth scenarios:  1) business-as-usual growth of 60 MWac; 2) modest policy changes with growth of 220 MWac; and 3) policy incentives that emulate those of other states recently enabling and exhibiting community solar growth, such as New York and Minnesota, resulting in 500 MWac(*).

Under the most ambitious policy scenario, development of 500 MW of community solar over 10 years could:  

  • Contribute up to $1.76 billion to Washington's Gross State Product (GSP)
  • Generate $76.49 million in state tax revenue
  • Create 16,521 job-years (or 1,652 full-time jobs per year)
  • Provide $4.66 million in lease payments to participating landowners

Additionally, the study offers several policies that can accelerate community solar development:

  • Expand the capacity limitations of community solar projects to allow for economies of scale 
  • Educate communities on the benefits of community solar and involve them in the decision-making process
  • Standardize interconnection cost-sharing
  • Create a long-term incentive structure with consideration for gradual and clearly defined incentive levels 
  • Improve billing transparency through consolidated billing, net crediting, or other alternatives

As Washingtonians are experiencing increasing energy bills, community solar and other distributed energy resources provide a pathway to more accessible and affordable energy while advancing Washington's clean energy goals.

* MWac = megawatt alternative current

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