Oregon Public Utility Commission Gives a Green Light to Third-Party Ownership of On-Site Solar and Wind Facilities

On July 31, 2008, the Oregon Public Utility Commission (“the OPUC”) issued an Order that paves the way for developers to build and operate solar and wind facilities on property that belongs to utility customers. The Order comes less than two months after Honeywell International, Inc., Honeywell Global Finance, LLC, and PacifiCorp filed a joint petition with the OPUC seeking a declaratory ruling to resolve questions about how Oregon law and OPUC regulations would apply to solar facilities that are installed on a utility customer’s property but are owned by a third-party developer. See In re Honeywell et al., Docket No. DR 40, Order No. 08-388 (OPUC July 31, 2008). Chief Administrative Law Judge Michael Grant reduced the questions down to two key issues: (1) whether a customer is eligible for net metering under such an arrangement, and (2) whether the developer is subject to regulation by the OPUC.

Oregon Public Utility Commission Gives a Green Light to Third-Party Ownership of On-Site Solar and Wind Facilities