I must say, that the OPA has shown me today that they are really committed to the FIT program that was launched October 2009. If you have read my last number of blog entries, you will know what I thought about their proposal, and it wasn't pretty. The announcement today, while not as good as hoped, was better than I expected. The ideal situation was that the OPA would have left things as they were until October 2011, the planned review date. The worst case scenario was that the OPA would have implemented what they proposed. One choice would have seen the OPA loose, the other, the public.
The OPA instead implemented a fairer 3rd solution. There is good news and not so good news. First if you were proactive and applied for a microFIT ground mounted contract before July 2nd, you will get the old rates of 80.2 ¢ /kW. All ground mount applications on or after July 2nd, will get the new rate which is 64.2 ¢ /kW. This rate is 5.9 ¢ /kW more than expected, so it helps provide a more reasonable return on a ground mount investment.
Additionally, the OPA has extended the current microFIT domestic content requirements to May 31, 2011 for ground mounted projects, siting the delay in processing applications that the review process caused.
Who lost out, were companies that were intending to lease property to install ground mount microFIT installations on. I had heard rumors of 1 or 2 companies that had submitted between 1,000 and 4,000 applications. This was an obvious case of building FIT sized projects at microFIT rates, and was also rumored to be the reason for the rate change and review in the first place. Now essentially, you need to be the property owner to apply for a microFIT project.
After facing the possibility of the original OPA new rate category, I must say that their decision takes individuals and businesses concerns more to heart than I expected. I think that it is great that people that took initiative and had applied for contracts before the proposal, are able to complete their projects under the terms that they started it on. I am sorry that many people that chose to sit on the fence, lost out on the opportunity that the original rate offered, but feel that they can still do well, at the new rate.
In my mind, this is happy ending for people that seized the opportunity when they realized it.
One last thing to keep in mind going forward. I expect that rates will continue to drop, as production of solar equipment in Ontario grows and prices come down. You can choose to wait until the next review date, currently scheduled for October 2011 as far as I know, or you can decide to act and take advantage of the 64.2 ¢ /kW rate that is available now.
There is no cost to apply, and you have 12 months from the time you receive your offer to install your system. This gives you some flexibility to shop for a bargain, but without applying and getting an offer, you are subject to any change that may happen to the program (as this new rate category proves).
For complete details on the new rate category decision, visit the OPA website here...
If you would like help on completing a microFIT application, contact me, I am happy to help.
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