Maryland Geothermal REC Market

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Flett Exchange operates a market for Maryland Geothermal RECs, or commonly called GRECs. Owners of certified geothermal facilities in Maryland – homes, businesses, schools, hospitals – sell their GRECs on Flett Exchange. Energy companies purchase GRECs on Flett Exchange to comply with Maryland’s Renewable Energy Portfolio. If energy companies do not purchase enough GRECs they have to submit a compliance payment to the state of Maryland. That compliance payment is $100 until 2025 and is reduced after that. See the compliance schedule decrease under “specifications”. 

Owners of geothermal facilities can register and sell their GRECs directly on Flett Exchange. Flett Exchange also offers full-service GREC management. For full-service managed clients Flett Exchange will register your system with the state of Maryland, register with the database that creates GRECS, and sell your GRECs along with all of our other GREC clients. Sellers benefit from the increased prices due to the large volume Flett Exchange transacts. 

The following are some of the main aspects of the MD GREC Market:

  1. Installation date: January 2023 cut-off. Prior to January 2023 MD geothermal facilities produced Class 1 RECs. January 2023 or later installations produce GRECs. 

  2. MD Class 1 REC price cap: $30

  3. MD GREC price cap: $100 -moving down to $65. See the schedule.

  4. Residential and non-residential geothermal facilities in Maryland qualify for GRECs differently. 

    1. Residential:

      1. installed in a residential home that is not owned by a business. The system must meet ENERGY STAR standards and not feed electricity back into the grid.

    2. Non-residential:

      1. At a commercial building; or

      2. At multi-family housing units that qualified as low- or moderate-income housing on the date the system was installed on the property; or

      3. At institutions that primarily serve low- or moderate-income individuals and families, including i) schools with a majority of students who are eligible for free and reduced prices meals; ii) hospitals with a majority of patients eligible for financial assistance or who are enrolled in Medicaid; and iii) other facilities that serve individuals and families where a majority of those is enrolled in Federal or State Safety Net Programs.

      4. A system with a 360,000 BTU capacity is eligible for geothermal renewable energy credits only if the Company installing the system provides for its employees:

        1. Family-sustaining wages;

        2. Employer-provided health care with affordable deductibles and co-pays;

        3. Career advancement training;

        4. Fair scheduling;

        5. Employer-paid workers’ compensation and unemployment insurance;

        6. A retirement plan;

        7. Paid time off; and

        8. The right to bargain collectively for wages and benefits

 

  1. Low income carve-out. Energy companies must procure 20% of the GREC obligation from low-income geothermal facilities. Low or Moderate Income (LMI) for GREC purposes is a household with an aggregate annual income that is below 120% of the area median income. The ability to qualify for the low-income tag on the GRECs may help in the future if the GREC market gets oversupplied because these may retain value longer. 

  2. New Geothermal facilities must register with the Maryland Public Service Commission and GATS. Flett Exchange will register for full-service GREC clients.

 

Register for either a do-it-yourself or a managed GREC account on Flett Exchange to take the first step to receive payments for your GRECs. 

 

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