On Monday, the Arizona Corporation Commission voted 3-1 to proceed with a plan to require Arizona utilities to procure 15% of their electricity from renewable resources by 2025. A couple of things to note:
1. 30% of the required renewable energy must come from distributed generation resources — that is, energy generated on the customer side of the meter. This could provide support for up to 2,000 MW of solar, which is more, on a per-capita basis, then California’s groundbreaking $3.2 billion, 3,000 MW solar initiative passed earlier this year.
2. The commissioners are all Republican.
There are still several procedural steps to get through before the proposed rule becomes final, but this was a significant hurdle. I’ve said it before and I will say it again: The most significant leadership on renewable energy and global warming issues is coming from the states, not the feds.
