Arizona running out of money for solar incentives

Arizona Public Service Co. is looking to stem the tide of people seeking incentives for installing residential rooftop solar systems. The utility may not have enough money in its incentive pool to last through the year — and it faces the same problem in 2011.

APS filed an amended plan March 31 with the Arizona Corporation Commission, seeking to lower the incentive rate from $3 to $2.15 per installed watt, but the plan has yet to be approved by the ACC. It likely will be voted on during the commission’s April 13 meeting.

APS officials, however, say they don’t know what effect the proposed change will have on demand for solar — or how much money they will be able to pay out.

“We think (the incentives) will last longer than June, but we don’t know if they’ll last the whole year,” said APS spokesman Steven Gotfried.

ACC Chairwoman Kris Mayes said while the short-term issue needs to be resolved, long-term questions remain about the program. The commission wants to see incentives continued into next year to spur further solar development.

“We want to do solar in Arizona, but we’ve got to sustain it over a long period,” she said.

Read the full story in the Phoenix Business Journal.