PJM Region Shines with One Gigawatt of Solar Power

“We’re now truly harnessing the sun’s power,” said Andrew Ott, PJM senior vice president of Markets. “Throughout PJM we are seeing tremendous growth, which aids in meeting the renewable goals of states in our region,” Ott said.

The states’ renewable goals are presented on page 47 of PJM’s Regional Transmission Expansion Plan report.

Businesses and residences who are able to generate at least one megawatt-hour of power from solar energy can qualify to capture credit for the megawatt-hour as a solar renewable energy credit (REC). The solar REC can be traded or sold to another entity to satisfy its compliance with state goals. PJM Environmental Information Services (EIS), a subsidiary of PJM, administers the registry, the Generation Attribute Tracking System (GATS), which tracks and records RECs.

A portion of the one GW of solar is considered “behind-the-meter” generation because it is not offered into the PJM wholesale market. However, “behind-the-meter” solar is also tracked by the PJM EIS registry.

PJM’s Renewable Energy Dashboard provides a snapshot of how much renewable energy is available in PJM and proposed to be built in the region.

PJM Interconnection, founded in 1927, ensures the reliability of the high-voltage electric power system serving 60 million people in all or parts of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. PJM coordinates and directs the operation of the region’s transmission grid, which includes 62,000 miles of transmission lines; administers a competitive wholesale electricity market; and plans regional transmission expansion improvements to maintain grid reliability and relieve congestion.

www.pjm.com