In light of the increasing risk of wildfires and continuing in its commitment to equity, California has modified an incentive program in manner that will support the deployment of energy storage systems for electricity customers in high fire threat regions that serve low-income or Disadvantaged Communities (DAC).

In their recent decision (19-09-027) the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) made several changes to the existing Self Generation Incentive Program (SGIP), a long standing incentive that has more recently been focused on supporting the deployment of energy storage systems. Among other changes, D.19-09-027 creates a $100 Million budget dedicated to incentivizing energy storage projects that qualify as “Equity Resiliency Projects”. Projects that qualify under this aspect of the program can receive an incentive of up to $1 per watt-hour, which in many cases will cover the entire cost of the battery.

Who Qualifies for this Equity Resiliency Incentive?

Among others…

  • Non-residential customers located in a Tier 2 or Tier 3 High Fire Threat District (HFTD)
  • That provide critical facilities or critical infrastructure
  • To a community that is
    • Located in a Tier 3 or Tier 2 HFTD
    • AND either a DAC OR Low-Income community
      • DAC: In the top 25% most affected census tracts in the most recent version of the CalEnviroScreen
      • Low-income: (1) census tracts with median household incomes at or below 80% of the statewide median income; or (2) with median household incomes at or below the threshold designated as low-income pursuant to Section 50093
  • Limited to:
    • Police & fire stations, 911 call centers
    • Medical facilities
    • Public & private gas, electric, water, wastewater or flood control facilities
    • Jails & prisons
    • Locations designated to provide assistance during PSPS events
    • Cooling centers designated by state or local governments
    • Homeless shelters supported by federal, state, or local governments

Depending on the electricity demands of your facilities, and the region where your facilities are located, energy storage systems have the potential to provide benefits including reducing your ongoing energy costs. To find out more, contact us at hello@terraverde.energy.