Bill Would Retain Ohio’s Renewable Energy Requirement

Sen. Matt Dolan (R-Chagrin Falls) has introduced Senate Bill 89 to make an 8.5% renewable portfolio standard (RPS) permanent. Dolan has told the media that the bill represents a compromise necessitated by the passage of House Bill 6, which lowers Ohio’s renewable energy benchmarks from 12.5% to 8.5% by 2026 and terminates the RPS in 2027.

An 8.5% RPS would not be affected by FERC’s Minimum Offer Price Ruling (MOPR). Any RPS exceeding 8.5% would be subject to the MOPR (due to state subsidies), impairing new renewable projects’ ability to compete for PJM capacity revenue. In contrast, the growing market of private corporate renewable energy purchases will not be subject to the MOPR ruling. 3/2/2021