Virginia Law

A. The commission establishes the following process for certification through the commission:

1. Any potential ARB that chooses to certify directly with the commission must submit to the director of the commission's Division of Public Utility Regulation an Accelerated Renewable Energy Buyer Certification Form by March 1 for the upcoming year, starting June 1 and concluding May 31, based on load data and information from the prior calendar year.

2. Upon receipt of a completed Accelerated Renewable Energy Buyer Certification Form pursuant to subdivision A 1 of this section, commission staff shall provide the appropriate Phase I or Phase II Utility with a copy of the completed Accelerated Renewable Energy Buyer Certification Form, excluding copies of any executed contracts provided to commission staff by the potential ARB, and set a deadline by which the utility shall submit comments to commission staff. The utility's comments shall include confirmation to commission staff that the potential ARB meets the aggregate load requirements of § 56-585.5 of the Code of Virginia. The utility shall also send a copy of its comments to the potential ARB.

3. Following receipt of a completed Accelerated Renewable Energy Buyer Certification Form pursuant to subdivision A 1 of this section, based on its review and the comments received, commission staff shall determine by May 1 whether the potential ARB meets the requirements of § 56-585.5 G of the Code of Virginia and this chapter, the type of certification (i.e., REC-only contract or bundled contract), and the percentage exemption.

4. Within five business days of its certification decision, commission staff shall provide the appropriate Phase I or Phase II Utility with a list of customer accounts associated with each certified ARB, the type of certification (i.e., REC-only contract or bundled contract), and the percentage exemption. Commission staff shall also provide each Phase I Utility and Phase II Utility with the nameplate capacity of the solar and wind generation of certified ARBs with bundled contracts.

B. Any potential ARB or Phase I or Phase II Utility that contests the certification decision made by commission staff must file a formal complaint with the commission pursuant to 5VAC5-20-100 within 10 business days of the certification decision. Any statutorily exempt charges incurred by the potential ARB after June 1 are subject to collection or refund, depending on the certification decision.

C. Customers certified as ARBs through this process shall be exempt from the applicable charges, which could be a full or partial exemption, for one year starting June 1 and concluding May 31 following certification.

D. For a potential ARB that seeks certification based on its load and renewable energy under contract for the 2020 calendar year, the ARB must submit an Accelerated Renewable Energy Buyer Certification Form by March 1, 2022, based on information for the 2020 calendar year. Customers that are certified as ARBs based on 2020 calendar year information will receive a refund of applicable charges for the period of June 1, 2021, to May 31, 2022.

E. In lieu of resubmitting executed contracts or excerpts of such contracts on an annual basis, customers previously certified as ARBs may be recertified by providing an attestation from a corporate officer affirming that there have been no material changes to the relevant contracts during the previous year.