During a town hall meeting in Haddonfield on Tuesday, June 12, Governor Christie commented on the Senate and Assembly bills aimed at stabilizing the solar industry in New Jersey.

As for the Solar bills he said: “If they pass I will sign them”. He commented that the bills “will help to continue to support the solar industry which is a big job creator in this State”.

The Governor was referring to the Senate bill S1925 with primary sponsors Senator Bob Smith and Senate President Stephen Sweeney and Assembly bill A2966 with Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula as that bills primary sponsor. A bill is expected to be presented to the Governor for signature this month.

The spot SREC market has been trading between $130 and $140 during the past week. Without the potential passage of this bill, the SREC market would have most likely been trading below the $85 low experienced a month ago. The bill calls for significant increases in SREC purchases from energy providers, but not until the fall of 2014.  Long-term SREC prices will be less volatile with upper limits reduced.  SREC price caps are being reduced from the $600+ range to $339 and less starting in energy year 2014. The short term upward price movement due to bill passage should be limited due to the oversupply of SRECs this year and the next year. The oversupply will presumably be used for compliance in the fall of 2014.

Power producers, who are required by law to buy SRECs, will watch the pace of solar development over the next 6 months to determine if the market will be oversupplied once again. If developers throttle back to 20 mw /month or less the SREC market should stabilize and forward 3 year pricing should be in the upper $100s to low $200 range.

During Governor Chris Christies’ speech he commented on the expected closure of the Oyster Creek Nuclear plant, which is the countries oldest, in eight years. The expansion of solar along with the addition of “3 new natural gas fired power plants will be built in New Jersey in the next 5 years” should help keep power in New Jersey “cleaner and more affordable”.

Mark Incolllingo, a volunteer member of Haddonfield’s Sustainable NJ Green Team, asked the question in the following link to a video of a town hall meeting.

Here is a link to the video posted on the Star Ledger website on NJ.com:

http://videos.nj.com/star-ledger/2012/06/governor_responds_to_audience.html

More about Flett Exchange:
 
     Flett Exchange is a leading environmental exchange and brokerage firm. Our online trading platform brings transparency, price discovery, and liquidity to Solar Renewable Energy Certificates (SRECs). Our knowledgeable staff is also available to assist you in selling your SRECs for you. Over 4,400 active clients utilize Flett Exchange to negotiate the price, quantity, and details of SRECs through our brokers or on our online trading platform. Upon each SREC transaction Flett Exchange remits immediate payment to our sellers. Flett Exchange operates SREC markets in NJ, PA, DE, MD, OH, and DC supported by trained solar professionals with specialized knowledge and proven experience.
 
     Flett Exchange also brokers bilateral long-term SREC contracts between qualified counterparties. Flett Exchange buyers and sellers can secure price, quantity, and terms of SREC contracts 1-5 years in duration. Our stringent vetting process ensures that quality solar projects are presented to the market in a skillful manner. Buyers and sellers utilize Flett Exchange for long-term SREC contracts gain direct access to large pools of SRECs, while mitigating risk and locking-in profits. Please visit www.flettexchange.com to learn more about our services. (201) 209-0234.
 

DISCLAIMER: This article contains forward looking statements. Actual market action could differ materially from those anticipated. Sellers of SRECs should do their own research. Actual SREC production may differ significantly from those estimates. The company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement.