Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 220 CMR - DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC UTILITIES › Title 220 CMR 18.00 - Net Metering › Section 18.02 - Definitions

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
The terms set forth in 220 CMR 18.02 shall be defined as
		  follows, unless the context otherwise requires.
Administrator
. The qualified entity
		  selected by the Department to facilitate the System of Assurance.
Agricultural Net Metering Facility
. A
		  Renewable Energy generating facility that is operated as part of an
		  agricultural business and is not participating in the Small Hydroelectric Net
		  Metering Program, generates electricity, does not have a generation capacity of
		  more than two megawatts, is located on land owned or controlled by the
		  agricultural business, and is used to provide energy to metered accounts of the
		  business. Agriculture has the same meaning as provided in M.G.L. c. 128, §
		  1A; provided that, when necessary, the Commissioner of the Department of
		  Agricultural Resources shall determine if a business is an agricultural
		  business and whether the facility is operated as part of that business.
Anaerobic Digestion Net Metering
		  Facility
. A facility that:
(a) generates electricity from a biogas
		produced by the accelerated biodegradation of organic materials under
		controlled anaerobic conditions;
(b) has been determined by the Department of
		Energy Resources, in coordination with the Department of Environmental
		Protection, to qualify under the Department of Energy Resources' regulations as
		a Class I Renewable Energy generating source under 225 CMR 14:00:
Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard - Class I
and M.G.L. c.
		25A, § 11F; and
(c) is
		interconnected to a Distribution Company.
Billing Period
. The period of time set
		  forth in a Distribution Company's terms and conditions for which a Distribution
		  Company bills a Customer for its electricity consumed or estimated to have been
		  consumed.
Cap Allocation
. An assurance from the
		  Administrator that a Host Customer will receive Net Metering services upon a
		  Host Customer's receipt from a Distribution Company of notice of authorization
		  to interconnect.
Cap Exempt Facility.
Either:
(a) a Class I Net Metering Facility that is a
		Renewable Energy generating facility and has a nameplate capacity rating equal
		to or less than ten kilowatts on a single-phase circuit or 25 kilowatts on a
		three-phase circuit; or
(b) a Class
		II Net Metering Facility or Class III Net Metering Facility with an executed
		interconnection service agreement with a Distribution Company dated on or after
		January 1, 2021, provided that it is a Renewable Energy generating facility and
		serves On-site Load, other than parasitic or station load, and provided further
		that it is not a Net Metering Facility of a Municipality or Other Governmental
		Entity.
Class I Net Metering Facility
. A plant
		  or equipment that is used to produce, manufacture, or otherwise generate
		  electricity, that has a design capacity of 60 kilowatts or less, and that is
		  not a Small Hydroelectric Net Metering Facility participating in the Small
		  Hydroelectric Net Metering Program; provided, however, that a Class I Net
		  Metering Facility of a Municipality or Other Governmental Entity may have a
		  generating capacity of less than or equal to 60 kilowatts per unit. Each
		  Municipality or Other Governmental Entity may have an aggregate generating
		  capacity of not more than ten megawatts.
Class II Net Metering Facility
. An
		  Agricultural Net Metering Facility, Anaerobic Digestion Net Metering Facility,
		  Solar Net Metering Facility, or Wind Net Metering Facility with a generating
		  capacity of more than 60 kilowatts but less than or equal to one megawatt;
		  provided, however, that a Class II Net Metering Facility of a Municipality or
		  Other Governmental Entity may have a generating capacity of more than 60
		  kilowatts but less than or equal to one megawatt per unit. Each Municipality or
		  Other Governmental Entity may have an aggregate generating capacity of not more
		  than ten megawatts.
Class III Net Metering Facility
. An
		  Agricultural Net Metering Facility, Anaerobic Digestion Net Metering Facility,
		  Solar Net Metering Facility, or Wind Net Metering Facility with a generating
		  capacity of more than one megawatt but less than or equal to two megawatts;
		  provided, however, that a Class III Net Metering Facility of a Municipality or
		  Other Governmental Entity may have a generating capacity of more than one
		  megawatt but less than or equal to two megawatts per unit. Each Municipality or
		  Other Governmental Entity may have an aggregate generating capacity of not more
		  than ten megawatts.
Customer
. Any person, partnership,
		  corporation, or any other entity, whether public or private, who obtains
		  distribution service at a customer delivery point and who is a customer of
		  record of the Distribution Company for its own electricity consumption.
Department
. Department of Public
		  Utilities.
Distribution Company
. A company
		  engaging in the distribution of electricity or owning, operating or controlling
		  distribution facilities; provided, however, that a Distribution Company shall
		  not include any entity which owns or operates plant or equipment used to
		  produce electricity, except for facilities provided in M.G.L. c. 164, §
		  1A(f), steam and chilled water, or an affiliate engaged solely in the provision
		  of such electricity, steam and chilled water, where the electricity produced by
		  such entity or its affiliate is primarily for the benefit of hospitals and
		  non-profit educational institutions, and where such plant or equipment was in
		  operation before January 1, 1986.
Governmental Cooperative
. A
		  cooperative, organized pursuant to M.G.L. c. 164, § 136, whose members or
		  shareholders are all Municipalities or Other Governmental Entities.
Host Customer
. A Customer with a Class
		  I Net Metering Facility, Class II Net Metering Facility, Class III Net Metering
		  Facility, or Small Hydroelectric Net Metering Facility participating in the
		  Small Hydroelectric Net Metering Program that generates electricity on the
		  Customer's side of the meter.
ISO-NE
. ISO New England Inc., the
		  independent system operator for New England, or its successor, authorized by
		  the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to operate the New England bulk power
		  system and administer New England's organized wholesale electricity market
		  pursuant to the ISO NE Tariff and operation agreements with transmission
		  owners.
Locational Marginal Price (LMP)
. The
		  price of electric energy set by ISO-NE at each load zone, external interface
		  with neighboring regions, and the hub that reflects:
(a) the operating characteristics of, and the
		major constraints on, the New England transmission system at each area;
		and
(b) the losses resulting from
		physical limits of the transmission system.
Market Net Metering Credit
. A Net
		  Metering Credit provided by a Distribution Company for the net excess
		  electricity generated and fed back to the Distribution Company by a New Solar
		  Net Metering Facility and other Solar Net Metering Facilities that are not Cap
		  Exempt Facilities after 25 years from the date that each Solar Net Metering
		  Facility was first authorized to interconnect to the electric distribution
		  system as provided by M.G.L. c. 164, § 139(k).
Municipality
. A city or town.
Neighborhood
. A geographic area within
		  a Municipality, subject to the right of the Department to grant exceptions
		  pursuant to
		  220
		  CMR 18.09(7), that:
(a) is recognized by the residents as
		including a unique community of interests;
(b) falls within the service territory of a
		single Distribution Company and within a single ISO-NE load zone; and
(c) may encompass residential, commercial,
		and undeveloped properties.
Neighborhood Net Metering Facility
. A
		  Class I Net Metering Facility, Class II Net Metering Facility, or Class III Net
		  Metering Facility that:
(a) is owned
		by, or serves the energy needs of, a group of ten or more residential Customers
		that reside in a single Neighborhood and are served by a single Distribution
		Company;
(b) may also be owned by,
		or serve the energy needs of, other Customers who reside in the same
		Neighborhood and are served by the same Distribution Company as the residential
		Customers that own or are served by the facility; and
(c) is located within the same Neighborhood
		as the Customers that own or are served by the facility.
Net Metering
. The process of measuring
		  the difference between electricity delivered by a Distribution Company and
		  electricity generated by a Class I Net Metering Facility, Class II Net Metering
		  Facility, Class III Net Metering Facility, or Small Hydroelectric Net Metering
		  Facility participating in the Small Hydroelectric Net Metering Program and fed
		  back to the Distribution Company.
Net Metering Credit
. Any credit,
		  including a Market Net Metering Credit and a Neighborhood Net Metering Credit
		  as defined in M.G.L. c. 164, § 138, provided by a Distribution Company for
		  the net excess electricity generated and fed back to the Distribution Company
		  by a Class I Net Metering Facility, Class II Net Metering Facility, Class III
		  Net Metering Facility, Neighborhood Net Metering Facility, or Small
		  Hydroelectric Net Metering Facility participating in the Small Hydroelectric
		  Net Metering Program.
Net Metering Facility of a Municipality or Other
		  Governmental Entity
. A Class I Net Metering Facility, Class II Net
		  Metering Facility, or Class III Net Metering Facility:
(a) that is owned or operated by a
		Municipality or Other Governmental Entity; or
(b) of which the Municipality or Other
		Governmental Entity is the Host Customer and is assigned 100% of the output.
New Solar Net Metering
		  Facility
.
(a) A Solar Net
		Metering Facility that submits an application for a Cap Allocation to the
		System of Assurance after September 26, 2016 for the entire capacity of the
		Solar Net Metering Facility; or
(b)
		A Solar Net Metering Facility that submits an application for a Cap Allocation
		to the System of Assurance before September 26, 2016, but which is subsequently
		deemed complete by the Administrator and does not receive a Cap Allocation from
		the Administrator until after January 8, 2017; or
(c) A Solar Net Metering Facility that
		submits an application for a Cap Allocation to the System of Assurance before
		September 26, 2016, is subsequently deemed complete by the Administrator and
		receives a Cap Allocation before or on January 8, 2017, but that seeks to
		expand the generating capacity at a later date after September 26, 2016, such
		that the entire facility, including the expanded generating capacity, is a
		Class II Net Metering Facility or Class III Net Metering Facility.
Notification Date
. The date
		  established by Department order after which all New Solar Net Metering
		  Facilities shall generate Market Net Metering Credits only as determined
		  pursuant to M.G.L. c. 164, § 139(b1/2).
On-site Load
. Any new or existing
		  electric load located at the site of a Net Metering facility, other than
		  parasitic load that may result from the installation and operation of the Net
		  Metering facility, and that is wired to be served by a portion of the
		  electrical energy output from the Net Metering facility before the balance of
		  such output passes through the Net Metering facility's metered interconnection
		  onto the electric grid. An energy storage system, as defined in M.G.L. c. 164,
		  § 1, does not constitute On-site Load.
Other Governmental Entity
. A
		  department or agency of the Federal government or of the Commonwealth, and any
		  other entity as approved by the Department.
Renewable Energy
. Energy generated
		  from any source that qualifies as a Class I or Class II Renewable Energy
		  generating source under M.G.L. c. 25A, § 11F; provided, however, that
		  after conducting administrative proceedings, the Department of Energy
		  Resources, in consultation with the Department of Agricultural Resources, may
		  add technologies or technology categories.
Small Hydroelectric Net Metering
		  Facility
. A facility for the production of electrical energy that
		  uses water to generate electricity, with a nameplate capacity of two megawatts
		  or less, and is interconnected to a Distribution Company.
Small Hydroelectric Net Metering
		  Program
. A distinct technology-specific Net Metering program
		  wherein each Small Hydroelectric Net Metering Facility that seeks to net meter
		  while the program is open participates in a separate cap and generates a Net
		  Metering Credit pursuant to M.G.L. c. 164, § 139A.
Solar Net Metering Facility
. A
		  facility for the production of electrical energy that uses sunlight to generate
		  electricity and is interconnected to a Distribution Company.
System of Assurance
. The Massachusetts
		  System of Assurance of Net Metering Eligibility, as established by the
		  Department pursuant to M.G.L. c. 164, § 139(g).
Wind Net Metering Facility
. A facility
		  for the production of electrical energy that uses wind to generate electricity
		  and is interconnected to a Distribution Company.