The Competitive Solar Incentive (CSI) Program is an annual competitive procurement that provides incentives to qualifying grid supply solar generation projects (i.e., those selling into wholesale markets), grid supply solar generation paired with energy storage, and to large non-residential net metered projects with a capacity greater than 5 MWdc.  The annual solicitation target is 300 MW of new solar generation, and 160 MWh of energy storage paired with solar generation.

To qualify for the CSI Program, projects submit a pre-qualification application to provide evidence that the project meets maturity requirements and specific tranche eligibility criteria; pre-qualification applications undergo administrative review by the solicitation manager. Eligible CSI projects then submit a bid for an SREC-II award in an appropriate market tranche, specified in dollars per MWh of solar electricity production; pre-qualified projects compete on bid price only.  CSI-eligible projects may bid for SREC-IIs in five market tranches:  1) Tranche 1, basic grid supply projects; 2) Tranche 2, grid supply projects sited on the built environment; 3) Tranche 3, grid supply projects sited on contaminated sites and landfills; 4) Tranche 4, net metered non-residential projects greater than five (5) MW; and 5) Tranche 5, energy storage paired with a grid supply project eligible for Tranche 1, 2 or 3.

Rules for the CSI Program are codified at N.J.A.C. 14:8-11 as part of the larger Successor Solar Incentive (SuSI) Program.

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Solicitation Information

The Board anticipates announcing the opening of the third CSI Program solicitation at an upcoming agenda, with the solicitation window opening to prequalification applications shortly thereafter. You are encouraged to monitor the Board’s website to review each agenda as it is posted.

Visit the New Jersey Competitive Solar Incentive Program page at csisolar.nj.gov for:

• Prequalification applications and bid submission
• Prequalification requirement checklists
• Agricultural Land Use area calculations
• FAQs

Incentive awards made through the CSI Program are intended to reflect current market conditions and provide a long-term, guaranteed incentive structure for developer investment.  At the same time, the competitive solicitation process was specifically established to ensure that the state incentivizes the projects that seek the lowest incentive contribution from the ratepayers.  To ensure that the cost of the SREC-II awards represent the lowest cost to New Jersey’s ratepayers, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (Board) may set confidential, pre-determined price caps for any or all tranches prior to opening the solicitation.

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CSI Program Registration

After the Board announces awards by Board Order for a solicitation, the CSI online registration portal will be opened.  Only new CSI projects that have been awarded a bid by Board Order, pursuant to N.J.A.C. 14:8-11.10 will be permitted to register, and will have 30 days following the announcement of the award to register their CSI-eligible solar facility through the registration portal.

Registrants must submit an Initial Registration package with all required documents through the CSI Registration Online Portal.  The CSI Initial Registration package must include all the documents listed on the CSI Initial Registration Checklist which can be found on the CSI registration portal homepage.

Further information on CSI Program registration, including requirements and forms, can be found below.

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Siting for CSI-Eligible Facilities

The Solar Act of 2021 directed the Board to establish siting criteria for all CSI-eligible facilities, defined at N.J.A.C. 14:8-1.2 as “all grid supply solar facilities and net metered solar facilities over 5 MW as measured in direct current (MWdc), connected to a distribution or transmission system operated by a New Jersey electric distribution company.” The Board requires that all solar facilities, whether or not their owner/operators opt to seek incentives through the CSI Program, be required to register their respective solar projects with the CSI Program registration manager so that the Board is able to track and monitor all solar facilities subject to New Jersey’s solar siting rules.

Siting Rules for Grid Supply and Large Net Metered Solar Facilities are published to the New Jersey Register at N.J.A.C. 14:8-12.  These rules apply to all solar installations that would be eligible to compete in the Competitive Solar Incentive (CSI) Program.

CSI-eligible facilities are prohibited from siting on the following land use types, as listed at N.J.A.C. 14:8-12.3:

• Land preserved pursuant to the Green Acres Program, as defined at N.J.A.C. 7:36;
• Land located within the preservation area of the Pinelands area, as designated in subsection b. of section 10 at P.L. 1979, c. 111 (N.J.S.A. 13:18A-11);
• Land designated as forest area in the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan adopted pursuant to P.L. 1979, c.111 (N.J.S.A. 13:18A-1 et seq.);
• Land designated as freshwater wetlands, as defined pursuant to P.L. 1987, c. 156 (N.J.S.A. 13:9B-1 et seq.), or coastal wetlands, as defined pursuant to P.L. 1970, c. 272 (N.J.S.A. 13:9A-1 et seq.);
• Lands located within the Highlands preservation area, as designated in subsection b. of section 7 at P.L. 2004, c. 120 (N.J.S.A. 13:20-7b);
• Forested land and associated transition zones; and
• Covered agricultural lands in excess of the Statewide threshold of 2.5 percent of such soils, as set forth at N.J.A.C. 14:8-12.4.

Pursuant to N.J.A.C. 14:8-12.6, those seeking to site a CSI-eligible facility on non-agricultural prohibited land uses may file a petition with the Board to waive the prohibition for good cause shown.  A petitioner for a land use waiver must provide sufficient evidence that a project serves the public interest and set out the unique factors that make the project consistent with the character of the specific site.  A petitioner may include evidence of community support; approval(s) from an overseeing agency at the State or Federal level; considerations of alternative siting, compensatory mechanisms for any detrimental effects, and/or resiliency benefits to critical infrastructure, services or communities; a valid letter of interpretation or other determination of resource value classification; and/or considerations for and avoidance of the net loss of environmental resources.  For a contaminated site or landfill sited on prohibited land uses, a petitioner may also include maps and/or details on the status of applicable compliance and/or remediation requirements.   The Board may consult with other State agencies in making a waiver determination.

• Board Order dated January 10, 2024, IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION OF NEXTGRID INC. FOR AN ORDER ISSUING A WAIVER FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SOLAR ELECTRICITY GENERATION FACILITY IN THE NEW JERSEY PINELANDS PRESERVATION AREA PURSUANT TO THE COMPETITIVE SOLICITATION INCENTIVE PROGRAM SITING REQUIREMENTS
• Board Order dated January 10, 2024, IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION OF THE NORTH JERSEY DISTRICT WATER SUPPLY COMMISSION, IN CONJUNCTION WITH NEXAMP SOLAR, LLC., FOR A FLOATING SOLAR PROJECT ELIGIBILITY WAIVER UNDER THE COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE PROGRAM, (P.L. 2021, C. 169)

CSI-eligible facilities are not allowed to register with the Board and pursue development if the cumulative solar development on covered agricultural lands, as defined at N.J.A.C. 14:8-12.2, exceeds 2.5% of such lands Statewide.  Following the second CSI solicitation, this limit is 8,085 acres.   CSI-eligible facilities are also not allowed to pursue development in any county if the cumulative solar development on covered agricultural lands in that county exceeds a 5% threshold.  The acreages of the county-by-county 5% development limit are available at csisolar.nj.gov.  The Board will not consider waivers for proposed solar facilities that exceed the 5% county concentration limit within a given county.  Facilities approved as dual-use agrivoltaics facilities will not count towards cumulative solar development acreage.

Pursuant to construction requirements found at N.J.A.C. 14:8-12.8, CSI-eligible facilities must comply with the NJ Department of Environmental Protection’s Standards for the Use of Pollinator-Friendly Native Plant Species and Seed Mixes in Grid Supply and Select Net Metered Solar Facilities. Facilities sited on the built environment or on a contaminated site or landfill are exempted from compliance with these standards.

All CSI-eligible facilities, other than those located on the built environment, must comply with the requirements for soil erosion and sediment control in accordance with the N.J. Soil Erosion and Sediment Control Act (N.J.S.A. 4:24-39 et seq.) and implementing Rules at N.J.A.C. 2:90-1.0 et seq.

CSI-eligible facilities shall comply with NJDEP’s Stormwater Management Rules pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:8.

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Program History

Per Board Order dated December 7, 2022, IN THE MATTER OF COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE (“CSI”) PROGRAM PURSUANT TO P.L. 2021, C.169 – ORDER LAUNCHING THE CSI PROGRAM, the Board established the CSI Program to incentivize large solar facilities within the Successor Solar Incentive (SuSI) Program, as mandated by the Solar Act of 2021.

CSI Solicitation History

Second Solicitation (Nov. 2023 - Feb. 2024):

• The second solicitation of the CSI Program opened on November 27, 2023 and closed to bids on February 29, 2024.  By Board Order on April 17, 2024, IN THE MATTER OF THE COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE (“CSI’) PROGRAM PURSUANT TO P.L.,2021, C.169, ORDER ON THE OUTCOME OF THE SECOND SOLICITATION OF THE CSI PROGRAM, the Board made awards totaling 310.21 MW of solar generation and 80 MWh of energy storage paired with solar generation.  The Board awarded SREC-IIs to eight projects, five in Tranche 1: Basic Grid Supply and three in Tranche 3: Grid Supply on Contaminated Sites or Landfills; one Tranche 1 project also received an award for storage paired with solar generation in Tranche 5.   No bids were received in Tranche 2: Grid Supply on the Built Environment or Tranche 4: Net Metered Projects Greater than five (5) MW, and the Board reallocated the capacity from these tranches to award additional competitively bid projects in Tranche 1.  On September 17, 2024, the Board hosted a stakeholder session inviting feedback on the solicitation process, project maturity requirements, tranche considerations, siting and funding; the replay of the meeting may be viewed here.
• By Board Order on November 17, 2023, IN THE MATTER OF THE COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE (“CSI’) PROGRAM PURSUANT TO P.L. 2021, C.169, ORDER ADDRESSING PRICE CAP DETERMINATION, the Board established confidential price caps for all tranches in the second CSI Program solicitation and detailed mechanisms to promote State fiscal responsibility around the price caps.
• By Board Order dated September 27, 2023, IN THE MATTER OF THE COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE (“CSI’) PROGRAM PURSUANT TO P.L.,2021, C.169, ORDER ADDRESSING THE TIMING OF THE SECOND CSI PROGRAM SOLICITATION, the Board approved the postponement of the second solicitation of the CSI Program.  The newly scheduled solicitation for pre-qualification was set to open to new applications on November 27, 2023, and the solicitation closed to bids on February 29, 2024, at 11:59:59 PM (EST).

First Solicitation (Feb. 2023 - Mar. 2023):

• The first solicitation of the CSI Program opened for prequalification on February 1, 2023, and bid submission closed on March 31, 2023.  By Board Order dated July 12, 2023, IN THE MATTER OF COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE (“CSI”) PROGRAM PURSUANT TO P.L. 2021, C.169, ORDER ON THE OUTCOME OF THE 2023 CSI PROGRAM SOLICITATION, the Board declined to make any awards in the first solicitation as all bids were higher than confidential, pre-determined price caps set by the Board for the solicitation.  The Board directed the second solicitation to take place on an expedited timeline, opening to pre-qualification applications on October 1, 2023, and closing to bid submissions on December 31, 2023, at 11:59:59 pm.
• During the second solicitation window, the Board issued a Request for Information on March 7, 2023, seeking stakeholder input on the registration requirement that a registration package “shall include electrical and building permits or documentation that applications for electrical and building permits have been submitted to the relevant municipality.”  Staff invited interested parties to submit comments on the timeframe of this requirement and barriers that it might impose on parties bidding into the first CSI Program solicitation; Staff received nine (9) comments.  By Board Order dated April 12, 2023, IN THE MATTER OF COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE (“CSI”) PROGRAM PURSUANT TO P.L. 2021, C.169, ORDER ADDRESSING REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS, the Board waived the registration requirement for electrical and building permits for registrants in the first solicitation, after considering this requirement a barrier to participation. In the same Order, the Board extended the timeline for registrants to supply a contract between the primary installer or third party owner, and the bidder or customer of record to one (1) year after receiving notice of conditional registration in the CSI Program.
• By Board Order dated March 6, 2023, IN THE MATTER OF COMPETITIVE SOLAR INCENTIVE (“CSI”) PROGRAM PURSUANT TO P.L. 2021, C.169, ORDER ADDRESSING PRICE CAP DETERMINATION, the Board established confidential price caps for all tranches in the second CSI Program solicitation.

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CSI Program Registration Information

A recording of the CSI Registration Webinar, presented by the CSI Program Manager, may be viewed here; pdf presentation is available here.

CSI Initial Registration Checklist and Forms

• CSI Program Initial Registration Checklist
• CSI Registration Certification Form
• CSI Initial Technical Worksheet

For Tranche 3 projects:

• Contaminated Sites Eligibility Verification Form
• NJ Department of Environmental Protection Permit Readiness Checklist

Milestone Reporting Forms

The Milestone Reporting Form is required for all CSI-eligible projects. This form must be submitted with the initial registration package and quarterly thereafter, up until the submission of the Final As-Built (Post Construction Certification) Package.

• CSI Milestone Reporting Form for Net Metered Solar Facilities 5 MW (dc) or larger
• CSI Milestone Reporting Form for Grid Solar Facilities

Identifying Major and Minor Deficiencies within CSI Registration Package

As a CSI Registration Package is reviewed, it will either be accepted or deemed incomplete. The below document defines how the CSI Program processing team identifies Major and Minor deficiencies within the CSI registration package.

• Major and Minor Deficiencies Document

CSI Final As-Built (Post Construction Certification) Checklist Forms

A completed Final As-Built packet (Post Construction Certification) and permission to operate (PTO) from the relevant Electric Distribution Company (EDC) must be submitted on or before the expiration date that is noted on the CSI conditional acceptance letter, including any extensions that have been granted.

Project developers must follow the interconnection process required by PJM Interconnect LLC, and facilitated by the EDC serving the location where the proposed project will be interconnected. Registrants must also obtain authorization to energize their interconnected system from their EDC or PJM Interconnect LLC and submit this documentation with the Final As-Built Packet (Post Construction Certification packet).

For awarded solar facilities that also received an adder award for paired electric storage, N.J.A.C. 14:8-11.6(k) the adder is provided for energy produced by the solar system. The storage adder may be subject to revocation, and the value of the SREC-II of the associated solar facility adjusted to compensate for over payment of any SREC-II adders, if Board staff determines that there is evidence lacking that the qualified storage facility remains operational.

• CSI Final As-Built Checklist
• CSI Final As-Built Technical Worksheet
• Post Construction NJCEP Compliance Form for Solar Facilities on Contaminated Sites and Landfills (will be posted shortly)

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Tools to assist in completing the Final As-Built Forms and equipment information:

PV Watts/System Advisor Model (SAM)

• PV Watts Calculator - Instructions for Using PV Watts Calculator
• System Advisor Model (SAM)

Commonly Used Shading Analysis Tools

NJCEP permits the use of other tools as long as the tool can provide a full summary report, in case the ADI Program Manager requests copies.

• Solar Pathfinder
• Solmetric Sun Eye

NJCEP permits the use of other tools as long as the tool can provide a full summary report, in case the CSI Program Manager requests copies.

Solar Azimuth Orientation Verification

• Solmetric Roof Azimuth Measurement Tool
• NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (formerly the National Geophysical Data Center)

NJCEP reserves the right to request a complete copy of production estimates, a full shade analysis, or any relevant documentation from the solar developer at any time. Save a copy of the “Results” pages for permanent record with the project file.

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Instructions on CSI Requirements for Decreases and Increases to the Solar System

The CSI Program allows solar systems to be increased in size by up to 20% or 25 kW (dc), whichever is smaller, from the original system size proposed in the initial CSI Registration package.

Net metered solar facilities cannot decrease the system capacity by any amount that would reduce the project below 5 MW (dc). Grid solar facilities can decrease in size from the capacity conditionally certified via Board Order, with no restrictions.

Registrants are required to submit a request to the CSI processing team for any increase to the system size that was proposed with the CSI Initial Registration package. The below CSI System Change Form must be emailed to NJREINFO@NJCleanEnergy.com to request a change to the size of the solar facility.

• CSI Request Form to Increase System Size

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Extenstion Policy

Solar facilities conditionally accepted in the CSI Program may be eligible for one 6-month extension. The registrant may apply for an extension for any solar installation that cannot complete the installation and submit a complete Final As-Built (Post Construction Certification) Packet with permission to operate from the Electric Distribution Company in the CSI online registration portal by the expiration date noted in the CSI Acceptance Letter.

• CSI Extension Request Checklist

Extension Requests will be reviewed and considered on a case-by-case basis and should include supporting documentation of extenuating circumstances for the delay in completing the facility, evidence that the facility has made progress towards completion, and demonstrations of the likelihood of timely and successful completion of the solar facility. For all solar facilities, the CSI Program Manager will consider whether the registrant has submitted timely quarterly milestone reporting forms. If the extension is granted, the CSI Program will provide a new registration expiration date six months from the expiration on the original conditional CSI Acceptance Letter.

Any CSI solar facility that would like to submit a request for a second extension must submit a petition to the NJBPU for consideration.

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Program Contacts

To receive emails on the upcoming Competitive Solar Incentive Program stakeholder workshops, webinars, and program updates, please sign up for the Renewable Energy Listserv.

Correspondence and inquiries should be directed to:

New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program
Successor Solar incentive (SuSI) Program
Competitive Solar Incentive (CSI) Program
NJREINFO@NJCleanEnergy.com
Phone: 866-NJSMART (866-657-6278)