Or. Admin. Code § 860-039-0005 - Scope and Applicability of Net Metering Facility Rules
(1) OAR
860-039-0010 through
860-039-0080 (the "net metering
rules") establish rules governing net metering facilities interconnecting to a
public utility as required under ORS
757.300. Net metering is
available to a customer-generator only as provided in these rules. These rules
do not apply to a public utility that meets the requirements of ORS
757.300(9).
(2) Upon request or its own motion, the
Commission may waive any of the division 039 rules for good cause shown. A
request for waiver must be made in writing, unless otherwise allowed by the
Commission.
(a) A public utility and net
metering applicant may mutually agree to reasonable extensions to the required
times for notices and submissions of information set forth in these rules for
the purpose of allowing efficient and complete review of a net metering
application.
(b) If a public
utility unilaterally seeks waiver of the timelines set forth in these rules,
the Commission must consider the number of pending applications for
interconnection review and the type of applications, including review level and
facility size.
(3) As
used in OAR 860-039-0010 through
860-039-0080:
(a) "ANSI C12.1 standards" means the
standards prescribed by the 2022 edition of the American National Standards
Institute, Committee C12.1 (ANSI C12.1), entitled "American National Standard
for Electric Meters - Code for Electricity Metering," approved by the C12.1
Accredited Standard Committee on June 9, 2022.
(b) "Applicant" means a person who has filed
an application to interconnect a net metering facility to an electric
distribution system.
(c)
"Contiguous" means a single area of land that is considered to be contiguous
even if there is an intervening public or railroad right of way, provided that
rights of way land on which municipal infrastructure facilities exist (such as
street lighting, sewerage transmission, and roadway controls) are not
considered contiguous.
(d)
"Customer-generator" means the person who is the user of a net metering
facility and who has applied for and been accepted to receive electricity
service at a premises from the serving public utility.
(e) "Distribution system" means that portion
of an electric system which delivers electricity from transformation points on
the transmission system to points of connection at a customer's
premises.
(f) "Equipment package"
means a group of components connecting an electric generator with an electric
distribution system, and includes all interface equipment including switchgear,
inverters, or other interface devices. An equipment package may include an
integrated generator or electric production source.
(g) "Export capacity" means the amount of
power that can be transferred from the small generator facility to the
distribution system. Export capacity is either the nameplate rating or a lower
amount if limited using an acceptable means identified in OAR
860-082-0033.
(h) "Fault current" means electrical current
that flows through a circuit and is produced by an electrical fault, such as to
ground, double-phase to ground, three-phase to ground, phase-to-phase, and
three-phase.
(i) "Generation
capacity" means the nameplate capacity of the power generating device(s) in
alternating current (AC). Generation capacity does not include the effects
caused by inefficiencies of power conversion or plant parasitic
loads.
(j) "Good utility practice"
means a practice, method, policy, or action engaged in or accepted by a
significant portion of the electric industry in a region, which a reasonable
utility official would expect, in light of the facts reasonably discernable at
the time, to accomplish the desired result reliably, safely and
expeditiously.
(k) "IEEE 1547"
means the standards published in the 2018 edition of the Institute of
Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Standard 1547, titled "IEEE
Standard for Interconnection and Interoperability of Distributed Energy
Resources with Associated Electric Power Systems Interfaces," approved by the
IEEE SA Standards Board on February 15, 2018.
(l) "IEEE 1547.1" means the standards
published in the 2020 edition of the IEEE Standard 1547.1, titled "IEEE
Standard Conformance Test Procedures for Equipment Interconnecting Distributed
Resources with Electric Power Systems and Associated Interfaces," and approved
by the IEEE SA Standards Board on March 5, 2020.
(m) "Impact study" means an engineering
analysis of the probable impact of a net metering facility on the safety and
reliability of the public utility's electric distribution system.
(n) "Interconnection agreement" means an
agreement between a customer-generator and a public utility, which governs the
connection of the net metering facility to the electric distribution system, as
well as the ongoing operation of the net metering facility after it is
connected to the system. An interconnection agreement will follow the standard
form agreement developed by the public utility and filed with the
Commission.
(o) "Interconnection
facilities study" means a study conducted by a utility for the
customer-generator that determines the additional or upgraded distribution
system facilities, the cost of those facilities, and the time schedule required
to interconnect the net metering facility to the utility's distribution
system.
(p) "Nationally recognized
testing laboratory" or "NRTL" means a qualified private organization that
performs independent safety testing and product certification. Each NRTL must
meet the requirements set forth by the United States Occupational Safety and
Health Administration.
(q) "Net
metering facility" means a net metering facility as defined in ORS
757.300(1)(d).
(r) "Non-residential customer" means a retail
electricity consumer that is not a residential customer, except
"non-residential customer" does not include a customer who would be a
residential customer but for the residency provisions of subsection (v) of this
rule.
(s) "Point of common
coupling" means the point beyond the customer-generator's meter where the
customer-generator facility connects with the electric distribution
system.
(t) "Public utility" has
the meaning set forth in ORS
757.005 and is limited to a
public utility that provides electric service.
(u) "Reference point of applicability" (RPA)
means a location proximate to the generation where the interconnection and
interoperability performance requirements, as specified by IEEE 1547,
apply.
(v) "Residential customer"
means a retail electricity consumer that resides at a dwelling primarily used
for residential purposes. "Residential customer" does not include retail
electricity customers in a dwelling typically used for residency periods of
less than 30 days, including hotels, motels, camps, lodges, and clubs.
"Dwelling" includes, but is not limited to, single-family dwellings,
separately-metered apartments, adult foster homes, manufactured dwellings, and
floating homes.
(w) "Spot network"
means a type of electric distribution system that uses two or more inter-tied
transformers protected by network protectors to supply an electrical network
circuit. A spot network may be used to supply power to a single customer or a
small group of customers.
(x)
"Written notice" means a required notice sent by the utility via electronic
mail if the customer-generator has provided an electronic mail address. If the
customer-generator has not provided an electronic mail address, or has
requested in writing to be notified by United States mail, or if the utility
elects to provide notice by United States mail, then written notices from the
utility must be sent via First Class United States mail to the notification
address provided by the customer-generator. The utility is deemed to have
fulfilled its duty to respond under these rules on the day it sends the
customer-generator notice via electronic mail or deposits such notice in First
Class mail. The customer-generator is responsible for informing the utility of
any changes to its notification address.
Notes
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 183, ORS 756 & ORS 757
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 756.040 & ORS 757.300
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