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Barton solar project could raise rates

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copyright the Chronicle June 28, 201

by Elizabeth Trail

 

BARTON — If Will and Victor Veve’s planned solar farm is built here on Aldrich Lane north of town, it could push up the Barton Electric Department’s rates by as much as 2.6 percent.

That’s according to some number crunching by the Vermont Public Power Supply Authority (VPPSA).

Under Vermont’s net-metering law, when privately owned solar panels feed power into the grid, the utility pays the panel owners the full retail electric price plus a bonus to encourage solar development.

Barton Electric pays solar panel owners 19.3 cents per kilowatt hour for the power their solar panels feed into the grid.

The payments are made in the form of credits against the customer’s bill. If a customer has enough solar panels, credits can completely offset the bill.

Another part of the net-metering law allows solar developers to sell power to customers at a discount and keep the difference between what they charge and the higher net-metering rate.

The power can be produced anywhere within the utility’s service area, so the nonprofit doesn’t have to host the solar field or buy land to put it on.

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