Annual Report 3 - New Mexico - Energy, Minerals and Natural ...

Solar Market Development Tax
Credit (STC) [NMSA 1978,
§7-2-18.14]: Inadequate federal
action was addressed when the
state stepped in with key incentives
to assist homeowners in solar
deployment starting in 2006.
With net-metering and the Solar
Rights Act already in place, the
Solar Market Development Tax
Credit (STC) was implemented,
followed by the Solar Gross Receipts
Tax Exemption. Combined with
healthier federal incentives that have
since been adopted, it is possible
for a homeowner to get reimbursed
for almost half the upfront cost
of a residential solar system.
Programs buying Renewable Energy
Certificates from PV system owners
have become available in the service
territories of investor-owned utilities,
which pay off after installation by
crediting customers’ utility billings.
Over 1,000 New Mexico taxpayers
have leveraged their own investment
in PV systems with these state,
federal, and utility incentives, while
another 450 have done the same with
solar thermal systems (see Figures
1 and 2). These systems in total
size are providing 2 MW of clean
electricity and 30 million British
Thermal Units (BTU) per day of
clean heating. The STC’s popularity
has increased every year and is in
place through 2016.
On the utility-scale side, New
Mexico’s Renewable Energy
Production Tax Credit (PTC) was
amended to incentivize solar projects
down to 1 MW in size and help
utilities meet requirements under
the Renewable Portfolio Standard.
1200
1000
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
800
600
400
200
0
Solar Market Development Tax Credit: Photovoltaics
0
82
198
ANNUAL REPORT 2010
98
255
186
534
418
976
2006 2007 2008 2009
3.3
30
95
123
9.2 8.1 9.7
157
No. of Certifed
Photovoltaic
Systems
Installed
Clean
Electricity
(kW)
Solar Market Development Tax Credit: Solar Thermal
2006 2007 2008 2009
Figure 1
Installed Clean Heating
(million BTU/day)
No. of Certified Solar
Thermal Systems
Figure 2
29