By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent
Baby steps.
That’s what you could call the Oklahoma Attorney General’s recent opinion that says third-party solar contracts – PPAs, leases and loans – would not result in solar installers or consumers being considered utilities.
This is a debate that has swept the country, and most recently occurred in Florida, where a decision similar to the Oklahoma one has led to a flood of residential solar companies into the state, including some of the nation’s largest solar companies with names you know like Sunrun and Vivint.
Could Oklahoma be next?
Probably not, according to an article at NewsOK, but solar advocates in the state certainly see the attorney general’s decision as a step in the right direction.
Solar advocates told NewsOK:
“It has been viewed forever and ever that you couldn’t offer (those types of agreements) in Oklahoma,” said Tyson R. Taussig, president of the Oklahoma Renewable Energy Council.
“I view it as casting a glimmer of sunlight on this issue,” Taussig said. “If the opinion gets backed up, it will be a huge development because it will allow motivated, creditworthy individuals in our state to buy their own rooftop solar systems at a really reasonable price. It would open up a whole new market.”
It certainly shouldn’t be viewed as a done deal by any stretch of the imagination, of course. After all, Oklahoma is the heart and soul of oil and gas country, and a fight with traditional utilities and fossil-fuel interests is bound to ensue before solar gets too far off the ground. Plus, electricity rates in Oklahoma are dirt cheap.
(Longtime solar advocates will recognize these arguments from Florida, where cheap electricity and powerful utilities scotched solar for decades.)
But the fact that this decision could start a serious conversation about a significant solar market here is, in and of itself, newsworthy.
Mike Teague, Oklahoma’s Secretary of Energy and Environment, told NewsOK:
“Our goal is to find the right ways to do this,” adding that the task force deliberately includes all interested parties in an attempt to avoid future legal entanglements or other issues. He said he expects its work to continue for years.
“This is how you get progress without turning it into a fight, and I think that is what we need,” he said.
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Oklahoma attorney general opinion energizes solar enthusiasts