23 CAR § 457-103. Definitions

The following definitions shall apply throughout this part, and any references to this part shall include these definitions except as required by context or by Arkansas Code § 23-18-604(c)(11)(A) as interpreted by the Arkansas Public Service Commission in Docket No. 23-021-R: (1)(A) “Additional meter” means a meter associated with the net-metering customer’s account to which the net-metering customer may request an electric utility apply credit with net excess generation or net-metering surplus from the net-metering customer’s generation meter. (B) Additional meter or meters: (i) Shall be under common ownership within a single electric utility’s service area; (ii) Shall be used to measure the net-metering customer’s requirements for electricity; (iii) May be in a different class of service than the generation meter; (iv) Shall be assigned to one (1), and only one (1), generation meter; (v) Shall not be a generation meter; and (vi) Shall not be associated with unmetered service; (2) “Annual billing cycle” means the normal annual fiscal accounting period used by the electric utility; (3) “Avoided cost” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(1); (4) “Billing period”. The billing period for net-metering will be the same as the billing period under the net-metering customer’s applicable standard rate schedule; (5)(A) “Biomass resource” means a resource that may use one (1) or more organic fuel sources that can either be processed into synthetic fuels or burned directly to produce steam or electricity, provided that the: (i) Resources are renewable and environmentally sustainable in their production and use; and (ii) Process of conversion to electricity results in a net environmental benefit. (B) This includes, but is not limited to: (i) Dedicated energy crops and trees; (ii) Agricultural food and feed crops; (iii) Agricultural crop wastes and residues; (iv) Wood wastes and residues; (v) Aquatic plants; (vi) Animal wastes; and (vii) Other accepted organic, renewable waste materials; (6) “Commission” means the Arkansas Public Service Commission; (7) “Distribution cooperative” means a member-owned electric utility organized pursuant to the Electric Cooperative Corporation Act, Arkansas Code § 23-18-301 et seq., that purchases the wholesale electricity it distributes to its members from Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation; (8)(A) “Electric utility” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(3). (B) Pursuant to Arkansas Code § 23-18-604(e), a person who acts as a lessor or service provider as described in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(8)(A)(ii) or § 23-18-603(8)(A)(iii) shall not be considered an electric utility; (9) “Energy storage device” means a device that: (A) Captures energy produced at one (1) time; (B) Stores that energy for a period of time; and (C) Delivers that energy as electricity for use at a future time; (10) “Facilities Agreement” means an agreement that provides the net-metering customer a good-faith estimate, based on the results of a facilities study, for the net-metering customer’s appropriate portion of the make-ready costs and associated expenses required to enable the net-metering customer’s use of the electric utility’s facilities and to cover the direct costs of interconnection and any grid upgrades required to connect the net-metering facility pursuant to Arkansas Code § 23-18-604(c)(9)(B)(i) and (ii), including applicable costs of constructing the electric utility facilities necessary to interconnect a net-metering facility as referred to in Arkansas Code § 23-18-604(c)(11)(A)(ii); (11)(A) “Facilities study” means a comprehensive engineering study conducted by an electric utility detailing the electric system infrastructure and the impacts to the transmission and/or distribution systems that would result if a proposed interconnection request were connected without project modifications or electric system modifications. (B) The purpose of a facilities study is to determine the required modifications to the electric utility’s transmission and/or distribution system to mitigate any potential adverse system impacts, including the appropriate portion of the estimated make-ready costs and the approximate time required to build and install such modifications as necessary to accommodate an interconnection request; (12) “Fuel cell resource” means a resource that converts the chemical energy of a fuel directly to direct current electricity without intermediate combustion or thermal cycles; (13) “Generation meter” means the meter associated with the net-metering customer’s account to which the net-metering facility is physically attached; (14)(A) “Geothermal resource” means a resource in which the prime mover is a steam turbine. (B) The steam is generated in the earth by heat from the earth's magma; (15)(A) “Hydroelectric resource” means a resource in which the prime mover is a water wheel. (B) The water wheel is driven by falling water; (16)(A) “Locational Marginal Price” means a market-based pricing mechanism used in electricity markets to determine the cost of electricity at a specific location on the power grid. (B) It reflects the cost of supplying electricity at a particular point, taking into account the cost of generation, transmission losses, and congestion on the power grid; (17) “Micro turbine resource” means a resource that uses a small combustion turbine to produce electricity; (18) “Monthly grid charge” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(4); (19) “Net excess generation” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(6); (20) “Net-metering” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(7); (21)(A) “Net-metering customer” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(8). (B) “Legacy net-metering customer” means a customer who submitted a Standard Interconnection Agreement for Net-metering Facilities for a particular net-metering facility prior to March 13, 2023. (C) “Legacy-transitional net-metering customer” means a customer who submitted a Standard Interconnection Agreement for Net-metering Facilities for a particular net-metering facility on or after March 13, 2023, but whose net-metering facility qualifies to remain under the rate structure, terms, and conditions in effect before December 31, 2022, until June 1, 2040, pursuant to Arkansas Code § 23-18-604(c)(11)(A). (D)“Non-legacy net-metering customer” means a net-metering customer whose net-metering facility does not qualify to remain under the rate structure, terms, and conditions in effect before December 31, 2022, until June 1, 2040, pursuant to Arkansas Code § 23-18-604(c)(11)(A); (22) “Net-metering facility” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(9); (23) “Net-metering surplus” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(10); (24) “Parallel operation”. (A) “Parallel operation with an electric utility’s distribution facilities” means the operation of a net-metering facility in compliance with applicable safety standards and power generation limits under this part while the net-metering facility is connected to the electric utility’s distribution system. (B) “Parallel operation with an electric utility’s transmission facilities” means the operation of a net-metering facility in compliance with applicable safety standards and power generation limits under this part if an electric utility owns transmission facilities that will be impacted by a net-metering facility; (25) “Renewable energy credit” means as defined in Arkansas Code § 23-18-603(11); (26) “Residential use” means service provided under an electric utility’s standard rate schedules applicable to residential service; (27) “Solar resource” means a resource in which electricity is generated through the collection, transfer, and/or storage of the sun's heat or light; and (28) “Wind resource” means a resource in which an electric generator is powered by a wind-driven turbine.