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This Web page summarizes wind activity on the following topics for the state of New Hampshire. Some of the following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.
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Policies and Guidelines
Renewable Portfolio Standard
This information was last updated on 6/17/2009. The New Hampshire Legislature successfully passed a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) during the 2007 session. The Bill — different parts of which draw from the Massachusetts and Rhode Island RPS legislation — passed both houses by a wide margin in early April. The Governor signed the bill into law on May 11, 2007. The new law has four "classes" of eligibility, each with its own targets as a percentage of retail electricity sales. As part of "Class 1," the RPS requires qualifying technologies (including wind) to provide 0.5% of New Hampshire electricity requirements by starting in 2009, increasing to 6% by 2015 and 16% by 2025.
More Information
- RPS Legislation, House Bill 873, an Act establishing minimum renewable standards for energy portfolios.
- The PUC has adopted Final RPS regulations to implement the RPS (PDF 145 KB)
- The University of New Hampshire published a report on the potential economic impacts of a New Hampshire RPS (PDF 301 KB).
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This information was last updated on 6/17/2009. In 2008, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) created a Sustainable Energy Division to oversee the state's renewable energy support programs. Included in the Division's responsibilities is the collection, management and disposition of any Alternative Compliance Payments collected under the Renewable Portfolio Standard, and any auction funds collected through the Regional Green House Gas Initiative.
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This information was last updated on 6/17/2009. HB1434 implements the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) in New Hampshire. New Hampshire initiated its involvement in Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative by participating in the December 2008 auction.
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This information was last updated on 6/17/2009. New Hampshire regulations for the planning and permitting of energy projects currently provide little if any guidance for commercial wind energy planning. Chapter 4 of the New Hampshire Energy Plan does mention the need to address wind energy projects and suggests that changes are needed to the state's Energy Facility Siting, Licensing, and Operation Procedures to accommodate the inevitable addition of wind energy to the New Hampshire energy supply mix. Chapter 8 of the Energy Plan discusses fuel diversity issues in the planning process.
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Incentives
Some of the available incentives for projects include tax incentives, public benefits fund supported grants and loans, and net metering. Net metering requires electric utilities to permit customers to reduce their electric bills by generating their own power using small-scale renewable energy systems. The excess power they generate can be fed back to their utilities, actually running their electric meters backwards.
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This information was last updated on 6/9/2005. State law in New Hampshire provides for municipalities to offer property tax exemption for renewable energy generation facilities, including wind supplying energy to a household or business. Fifty-seven municipalities have opted in to this exemption covering at least one type of renewable energy generator. See NH RSAs 72:61-72.
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This information was last updated on 6/9/2005. House Bill 447, passed in Spring 2007, increased net metering limits from 25 kW to 100 kW per project, while the aggregate system-wide cap was increased from .05% of load to 1% of load. The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission Code 900 (PDF 179 KB) provides for net metering. Final PUC rules are still pending. The interim rules in effect still contain language indicating the obsolete 25 kW limit.
House Bill 310 was passed granting municipal authority over small wind net metering.
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Siting
New Hampshire Site Evaluation Committee
This information was last updated on 1/10/2008. The Energy Facility Siting Process is administered by the New Hampshire Site Evaluation Committee (SEC) (PDF 24 KB). All commercial-scale electricity generating projects greater than 30 MW are required to go through the siting process, while projects less than 30 MW may be petitioned into the process. This "one-stop" process, detailed in Chapter 4 of the New Hampshire Energy Plan, may reduce project costs by shortening project timeline and simplifying the permitting process. The New Hampshire Site Evaluation Committee is responsible for issuing certificates to energy facilities such and certain electric generating and transmission facilities. It is also authorized to impose terms and conditions upon such certificates and to monitor the construction and operation of the certificated facilities. The SEC maintains a list of projects currently under review, as well as a list of past projects reviewed by the Committee.
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Transmission, Interconnection, and System Integration
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This information was last updated on 6/17/2009. The New Hampshire Legislature, ISO-New England, and interested stakeholders have established the "Commission to Develop a Plan for the Expansion of Transmission Capacity in the North Country." The Commission is developing a plan for possible paths to efficiently and effectively design and construct the transmission capacity necessary to facilitate renewable energy development. The ISO-New England interconnection queue currently includes requests for interconnection from approximately 400 MW of renewable generating capacity proposed for northern New Hampshire. To interconnect substantial additional renewable generation resources into this 115-kV transmission system or to interconnect these resources to remote higher capacity transmission substations will require upgrades to existing PSNH and National Grid facilities or the construction of new transmission lines. The extent of the system reinforcements depends on the amount and location of the proposed generation. The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission Background Report on New Hampshire Transmission Infrastructure (PDF 572 KB) was completed for the New Hampshire General Court in 2007, and describes four options for upgrading facilities that would support 400-500 MW of new generation. The options vary in cost between $160 and $210 million and would have different implications for where new resources could interconnect. The Commission releases a periodic progress report to address current developments. The latest progress report can be found at the top of the Transmission Commission's Web site.
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Other Initiatives
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This information was last updated on 6/17/2009. The New Hampshire Climate Action Plan, commissioned by order of the Governor, was released on March 25, 2009. The Climate Change Task Force recommends that New Hampshire endeavor to achieve long-term greenhouse gas emissions reductions of 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Based on the greenhouse gas emission reductions projected for the recommended actions, the Task Force has chosen a mid-term goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 20% below 1990 levels by 2025. In order to achieve this goal, there are 67 actions laid out in the plan that:
- Reduce greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, electric generation, and transportation.
- Protect our natural resources to maintain the amount of carbon sequestered.
- Support regional and national initiatives to reduce greenhouse gases.
- Develop an integrated education, outreach and workforce training program.
- Adapt to existing and potential climate change impacts.
25 x 25 Strategic Plan
This information was last updated on 6/17/2009. The 25 x 25 Plan is being jointly developed by the Office of Energy Planning (OEP), Department of Environmental Services, and the New Hampshire Business Resource Center. The goal of Governor Lynch's Plan is to ensure that 25% of New Hampshire's energy is derived from clean, renewable resources by 2025. Further development of the Strategic Energy Plan had been on hold while waiting for the Climate Change Task force to finish The New Hampshire Climate Action Plan, which was released on March 25, 2009. With the release of The New Hampshire Climate Action Plan, the 25 x 25 Strategic Plan should be forthcoming. As of the Spring of 2009, OEP had hired a consultant to assist in developing the plan. Recommendations we received by the consultant and are being incorporated into the working version of the Strategic Plan.
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Buying Wind Energy
There are currently no wind energy offerings.
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List of Installers and Vendors
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Click on the link to read more about the wind resources in New Hampshire. Back to Top
Read more information about events happening in the New England region.
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Total of 13 records found.
Page 1 of 2, Sorted by ascending state
Filtered by: States
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Date   |
State |
Type of Information |
Program Area |
Title |
More Details |
| 6/22/2011 |
NH |
News
|
Econ. Dev.
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DOE Offers Conditional Loan Guarantee to Support Development of New Hampshire's Largest Wind Farm |
...more |
| 9/23/2011 |
NH |
News
|
 |
Department of Energy Finalizes $169 Million Loan Guarantee to Granite Reliable Power |
...more |
| 10/25/2011 |
NH |
News
|
Policy
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Department of Energy Finalizes $169 Million Loan Guarantee to Granite Reliable Power: A Wind Powering America Success Story |
...more |
| 4/14/2009 |
NH |
|
Policy
Siting
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Conway, New Hampshire Wind Ordinance |
...more |
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NH |
Publication
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Small Wind
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Small Wind Electric Systems: A New Hampshire Consumer's Guide |
...more |
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NH |
Web Resource
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New Hampshire Sustainable Energy Association |
...more |
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NH |
Web Resource
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New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning |
...more |
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NH |
Web Resource
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Public Power
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New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission |
...more |
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NH |
Web Resource
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New Hampshire Incentives and Policies for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE Database) |
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NH |
Publication
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New Hampshire Energy Facts |
...more |
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