Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs)
IMPORTANT: New systems located in MA are no longer eligible to be enrolled in the MA SREC program.*
Massachusetts is one of a number of states that have a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS). This requires electricity suppliers to secure a portion of their electricity from renewable energy generators. In January 2010, The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) took it one step further by implementing a solar carve out requirement. This mandates that a certain portion of each utility’s generation be specifically from solar photovoltaic (pv). Utilities buy solar renewable energy credits (SRECs) generated from solar pv systems to meet this requirement. If they do not comply with the yearly state requirement, the utility must pay a fine.
Knollwood Energy buys solar credits from residential and commercial systems, bundles them and sells them to the utilities. This affords the smallest to the largest systems the benefit of being paid as if they were an institutional seller. Our relationships and large volumes enable us to get some of the highest prices in the market.
A Solar Renewable Energy Credit equals 1000 kilowatt hours (kWh) (or one megawatt hour). A 10 kW system will generate about 12,000 kWh’s or 12 SRECs per year. Prices of SRECs fluctuate and are determined by market forces and the state established penalty rate; they do not have an intrinsic or set value.
- Production from first quarter (January – March) is minted on July 15th
- Production from second quarter (April – June) is minted on October 15th
- Production from third quarter (July -September) is minted on January 15th
- Production from fourth quarter (October – December) is minted on April 15th
In any given year, if the supply of SRECs is greater than the demand, the state will implement the Solar Credit Clearinghouse Auction. This auction takes place at the end of July. Any SRECs sold in the auction will be bought at a fixed price of $300 (minus a $15 fee) per credit. There is no guarantee that SRECs deposited in the auction will sell. Any unsold credits from the auction will be reminted. They can be sold anytime over the next three years, but they can never be deposited into another clearinghouse auction.
Knollwood Energy makes the SREC process seamless and effortless for the facility owner and the installation company. We take care of all the paperwork required by the MA DOER, Mass CEC and Nepool GIS to get your facility approved and registered for SREC production. You or your Data Acquisition Service will report monthly meter readings to the Production Tracking System (PTS), and we will automatically send you payment for the number of SRECs minted. Please contact us for more information about our services or the Massachusetts SREC program.
* In 2010 MA DOER implemented the SREC program. That program closed to new installations in 2014. The next program was the SREC 2 program which closed in 2017. The SMART program was next and that program has now totally reached capacity.
The Class 1 REC program is the only incentive program currently being offered. Since the Class 1 REC incentive prog
See link below for a description of each of the programs.
https://www.mass.gov/service-details/program-summaries
