Credit: (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
File photo: Rooftop solar panels at Newark Liberty International Airport
State regulators on Wednesday formally adopted a new solar incentive program with the aim of developing 3,750 megawatts of new solar generation by 2026, a target that would double New Jersey’s solar capacity.
New Jersey Board of Public Utilities President Joseph Fiordaliso described the new program, approved after three years of discussion and debate with executives in the solar sector, as a monumental change and one that will help advance the Murphy’s administration’s goal of 100% clean energy by mid-century.
Solar energy is one of the cornerstones of that strategy and projected to provide 34% of New Jersey’s electricity by 2050. Once the new program is fully implemented, solar energy is expected to generate roughly 10% of New Jersey’s electricity needs, up from a little more than 5% currently.
Offshore wind farm under construction
The Murphy administration awarded the largest procurement yet for offshore-wind projects along the Eastern Seaboard, giving two developers the ability to triple the capacity of wind turbines in New Jersey, producing power for more than 1.6 million homes.
The winners of the state’s second solicitation for offshore-wind projects will build a combined 2,658 megawatts of new capacity, adding to the 1,100 megawatts now under development by Ørsted’s Ocean Wind project off Atlantic City. Ørsted won the right to build another 1,148 megawatts for its Ocean Wind II project, while Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind’s 1,510-megawatt project was also approved. The latter is a joint venture of EDF Renewables and New Shell Energies LLC.
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: NJ Spotlight News
File photo
The state is hiring an outside consultant to analyze what its transition to clean energy will cost ratepayers, an assessment repeatedly delayed even as policymakers approve projects saddling customers with billions of dollars in new charges.
The analysis was initially promised to be part of a new Energy Master Plan adopted 16 months ago but was never included. It was paused in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic when a partial shutdown led to a crippled economy. The master plan provides a blueprint of how New Jersey is going to achieve 100% clean energy by 2050 but fails to include detailed data on what it will do to customers’ bills.