subchapter 01v — DECOMMISSIONING AND FINANCIAL ASSURANCE requirements for UTILITY-SCALE SOLAR PROJECTs

Section .0100 — DECOMMISSIONING AND FINANCIAL ASSURANCE requirements for UTILITY-SCALE SOLAR PROJECTs

15A NCAC 01V .0101      applicability and DEFINITIONS

(a)  The project owners of a utility-scale solar project (USSP) shall comply with Part 2J of Article 9 of Chapter 130A of the General Statutes, "Management of Solar Energy Equipment," in accordance with the applicability and effective dates of S.L. 2023-58, s. 2.(e) and s. 4, and the requirements of this Section. Non-compliance shall be addressed through penalties issued in accordance with Part 2 of Article 1 of Chapter 130A of the General Statutes, as provided in G.S. 130A-309.243, including G.S. 130A-22 for the issuance of penalties and G.S. 130A-24 for the appeal of enforcement decisions.

(b)  The definitions found in G.S. 130A-290, G.S. 130A-309.240(a), and the following definitions shall apply to the rules of this Section:

(1)           "Corporation," "fiscal year," "parent," and "subsidiary" mean these terms as defined in G.S. 105-130.2.

(2)           "Project Owner" means the legal entity or entities that own the personal property that has been constructed or assembled for a USSP, which may be a different legal entity than the owner of the real property (landowner) on which the USSP has been constructed.

(3)           "Substantial Business Relationship" means the extent of a business relationship necessary under applicable State law to make a guarantee contract issued incident to that relationship valid and enforceable. A "substantial business relationship" shall arise from a pattern of recent or ongoing business transactions, in addition to the guarantee itself, that demonstrates to the Department that a business relationship between the guarantor and the project owner exists.

(4)           "USSP" means utility-scale solar project as defined in G.S. 130A-309.240(a). The Department's determination of whether a USSP meets the threshold in the statute definition of being "capable of generating 2 megawatts AC" shall be consistent with the determination made by the NC Utilities Commission as to whether a generating facility meets the two-megawatt capacity threshold for certification requirements pursuant to G.S. 62-110.1(g).

(A)          "Existing USSP" means a USSP for which an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) was submitted to the NC Utilities Commission (NCUC) pursuant to G.S. 62-110.1 before June 26, 2023.

(B)          "New USSP" means a USSP for which an application for a CPCN was submitted to the NCUC pursuant to G.S. 62-110.1 on or after June 26, 2023, or a USSP that was generating solar energy or was interconnected to a transmission facility on June 26, 2023, but was later rebuilt or expanded after June 26, 2023.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 130A-309.240(j);

Eff. April 1, 2025.