Glossary of SREC Terms

AEC (Alternative Energy Credit)
An SREC in Pennsylvania-speak. Pennsylvania uses this term in place of the more commonly used Renewable Energy Certificate.

AEPS (Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard)
RPS in Pennsylvania-speak. Pennsylvania uses this term in place of the more commonly used Renewable Portfolio Standard. The word "Alternative" is likely used because it passes a legislative litmus test in the coal industry-influenced state.

ACP (Alternative Compliance Payment)
Payment made per REC to a state by an energy supplier who falls short on their REC obligation.

BPU (Board of Public Utilities)
Most laws passed relating to electricity in the state are administered by the BPU, known in most states as the PUC. This body is responsible for overseeing the efforts of utility companies in the state. In most cases, once passed, the actual wording of an SREC law is interpreted by the BPU who then creates the rules of an SREC program.

CEC (Clean Energy Center)
A state-created organization designed to promote job growth and economic development in the clean energy industry in Massachusetts. The CEC is a major proponet of the SREC market in Massachusetts.

CPM (Clean Power Markets)
A private company originally responsible for the SREC tracking system set up in New Jersey in 2005. This responsibility has since been shifted to GATS. CPM continues to provide registration and verification services the Pennsylvania AEPS as well as other states. Jan Pepper, founder of Clean Power Markets was an early advisor to SRECTrade.

DOER (Department of Energy Resources)
State department in Massachusetts responsible for the creation and implementation of the Massachusetts SREC program.

EDC (Electricity Distribution Company)
The utility company responsible for distributing electricity to retail customers. This would be the company that distributes your electricity bill.

EGS (Electricity Generation Suppliers)
The utility company that creates the electricity that ultimately is delivered by the EDC to retail customers. This might be a natural gas producing company or a nuclear power plant.

FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
U.S. federal agency with jurisdiction over interstate electricity sales. (Wikipedia)

GATS (Generation Attribute Tracking System)
REC tracking system shared by Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, DC and Ohio.

GIS (Generation Information System)
REC tracking system used in New England.

ISO (Independent Systems Operator)
An ISO operates a region's electricity grid, administers the region's wholesale electricity markets, and provides reliability planning for the region's bulk electricity system. (Wikipedia)

kW (kilowatt)
A measure of the capacity of an electricity generating facility. A typical home ranges from 5-6 kW in capacity. 1 kW = 1,000 W.

kWh (kilowatt-hour)
A measure of the actual output of a facility. A 1 kW facility can produce anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 kWh per year in electricity. In most states, a 10 kW facility is known to produce 12,000 kWh per year, averaging 1,000 kWh per month which equals 1 SREC. 1,000 kWh = 1 MWh = 1 SREC.

LSE (Load-Serving Entity)
LSE represents any company that serves electricity load into a state electricity market. The LSE is ultimately responsible for buying SRECs to make up for the "dirty" electricity that it is selling into the state. An LSE is usually an electricity supplier that generates the electricity such as an EGS, however it can also be a power marketing firm that sells electricity on behalf of the EGS to the EDC, or in regulated states, the EDC will own generation facilities and is considered an LSE.

MW (megawatt)
A measure of the capacity of an electricity generating facility. Large solar faciliites on industrial rooftops or land-based solar farms will be above 1 MW. Utility-scale solar is above 20 MW and the largest solar farms are about 500 MW. 1 MW = 1,000 kW = 1,000,000 W.

MWh (megawatt-hour)
A measure of the actual output of a facility. A 1 kW facility can produce anywhere from 1 to 2 MWh per year in electricity. In most states, a 10 kW facility is known to produce 12 MWh per year, averaging 1 MWh per month which equals 1 SREC. 1,000 kWh = 1 MWh = 1 SREC.

NC-RETS (North Carolina Renewable Energy Tracking System)
REC tracking system used by North Carolina.

NCUC (North Carolina Utilities Commission)
The BPU/PUC of North Carolina

OCE (Office of Clean Energy)
The organization in New Jersey that administers the clean energy program and the SREC program.

PJM Interconnection (Pennsylvania Jersey Maryland (we suspect))
An RTO comprising of a combination of Mid-Atlantic and Midwest states. PJM owns and operates the GATS tracking platform. (Wikipedia)

PSC (Public Service Commission)
The PSC in many states is the organization responsible for administering the SREC program. They will develop and adminster the registration approval process and verify every facility qualified to produce SRECs.

PTS (Production Tracking System)
The organization in Massachusetts responsible for collecting and verifying meter readings for SREC production.

PUC (Public Utilities Commission)
Most laws passed relating to electricity in the state are administered by the PUC, known in some states as the BPU. This body is responsible for overseeing the efforts of utility companies in the state. In most cases, once passed, the actual wording of an SREC law is interpreted by the PUC who then creates the rules of an SREC program.

PUCO (Public Utilities Commission of Ohio)
Ohio's PUC

PV (Photovoltaics)
Electricity produced from solar panels, as opposed to that produced by Solar Thermal, Solar Hot Water, and other solar technologies. Most SREC programs are limited to PV systems.

RTO (Regional Transmission Organization)
RTO's operates a region's electricity grid, administers the region's wholesale electricity markets, and provides reliability planning for the region's bulk electricity system. It also is responsible for the transmission network as established by the FERC. (Wikipedia)

REC (Renewable Energy Certificate or Credit)
Created for every one megawatt hour of electricity produced by a qualifying renewable generator in a state that has an RPS. (Wikipedia)

RES (Renewable Electricity Standard)
Same as an RPS, but the term used at the federal level when discussing clean energy proposals.

RPS (Renewable Portfolio Standard)
A state law requiring that a certain percentage or volume of electricity sales in a state come from renewable energy sources. (Wikipedia)

SACP (Solar Alternative Compliance Payment)
Payment made per SREC to a state by an energy supplier who falls short on their SREC obligation.

SEU (Sustainable Energy Utility)
A state-sponsored non-profit in Delaware focused on the proliferation of renewable energy. The SEU plays a role in supporting the SREC market in Delaware.

SREC (Solar Renewable Energy Certificate or Credit)
Created for every one megawatt hour of electricity produced by a solar facility in a state that has set up a separate carve-out for solar in its RPS. (Wikipedia)