Jackson urges BPU to reject proposed New Jersey Natural Gas rate increase centraljersey.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from centraljersey.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Credit: (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
File photo: Solar farm
A long-debated bill aimed at spurring grid-scale solar projects in New Jersey won approval from legislators Tuesday, but that vote heightened doubts whether the state will achieve its ambitious clean-energy targets.
After a couple of hours of heated debate, the Senate Environment and Energy Committee approved the legislation (S-2605) in a 3-0 vote, despite solar developers, conservationists and consumer advocates all finding flaws in the bill, some asking for lawmakers to hold the bill.
Grid-scale projects are viewed as critical to the Murphy administration’s goal of having solar provide one-third of the state’s electricity by mid-century. The projects are widely considered the most cost-effective way to produce solar power from systems at the least cost to ratepayers by virtue of economies of scale.
Credit: (AP Photo/Toby Talbot)
File photo
The Murphy administration’s draft plan to revamp the way solar projects are funded in New Jersey needs to be modified to avoid unnecessarily large rate increases for ratepayers, according to the state Division of Rate Counsel.
Rate Counsel Director Stefanie Brand urged the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities on Friday to focus and place a stronger emphasis on minimizing the rate impact through the still-developing solar successor program.
The proposal is the latest aimed at advancing Gov. Phil Murphy’s clean-energy goals, a policy running into increasing concerns over the costs at a time when up to 1 million customers are in arrears in making payments on their utility bills because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
NJ regulators approve 2nd round of nuclear energy subsidies theridgefieldpress.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theridgefieldpress.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.