The YMCA was able to make the numbers work with help from an investor that will own the project for about seven years to capitalize on tax credits. That combined with transmission constraints, an abundance of generation in some places, and the tapering off of federal solar tax credits all point to a new, slower development phase, he thinks.
“I do sort of fear that we are losing some of that cache, some of that early mover advantage,” Farrell said.
The rates paid for utility customers’ surplus solar power have been stepped down since 2018, with more reductions possible. That growth was driven in large part by the state’s historically generous net metering policies, which are now in flux as state officials reassess to make sure ratepayers aren’t unfairly subsidizing passive-income projects for wealthy investors.Ĭhad Farrell, founder and CEO of Encore Renewables, which built the YMCA project, said he worries Vermont is “in a state of correction” after its decade-long solar boom. The city boasts more than 8 megawatts of solar, the vast majority of which was installed in the last decade. The project’s developer, however, warns that the industry may be losing momentum as state and federal policy support continues to shrink.īurlington has the highest installed solar capacity per resident of any city in the region, and it ranked fourth nationally last year, according to Environment America. A developer says that changes to state net metering and federal tax credits will make projects harder to put together without integrating storage.Ī new 150-kilowatt solar array atop Burlington, Vermont’s YMCA is the latest prominent addition to one of New England’s top solar cities.
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