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Section 7 – Additional Terms

Customer Electric Generating Facility

  1. A separate agreement shall be entered into for each Customer’s electrical service location(s).
  2. The electrical generating system facility used by the Customer shall be located on the Customer’s premises. It shall include all equipment necessary to meet applicable safety, power quality, and Interconnection requirements established by the National Electrical Code (Articles 690 and 705), National Electrical Safety Code, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Underwriters Laboratories, and the Utility’s Net Metering Interconnection Standards.
  3. The Utility shall have the sole authority to determine which Interconnection requirements set forth herein are applicable to Customer’s proposed generating facility.

Net Metering & Billing

  1. The Utility shall measure the net electricity produced or consumed by the Customer during each billing period, in accordance with normal metering practices.
  2. If the electricity supplied by the Utility exceeds the electricity generated by the Customer during the billing period, or any portion thereof, then the Customer shall be billed for the net electricity supplied by the Utility together with the appropriate customer charge paid by other customers of the Utility in the same rate class.
  3. If the electricity generated by the Customer during the billing period, or any portion thereof, exceeds the electricity supplied by the Utility, then the Customer shall be:
    1. Billed for the appropriate customer service charge as other customers of the Utility in the same rate class.
    2. Credited for the net excess kilowatt-hours generated during the billing period, with this kilowatt-hour credit appearing on Customer’s bill for the following billing period.
  4. Meter Aggregation: Upon the Customer’s request, the Utility shall aggregate for billing purposes the net meter that is physically attached to the Generating Facility with one or more meters located on the Customer’s premises that are owned or leased by the Customer within the service territory of the Utility, provided that the total load of the net metering system does not exceed one hundred kilowatts. Meters so aggregated shall not change rate classes due to meter aggregation, must be and remain on property owned or controlled by the Customer Generator, and must remain under the same name or account as the Customer Generator. Kilowatt-hour credits earned by Generating Facility during the program year first shall be used to offset electricity supplied to the Customer Generator’s Net Meter. Excess kilowatt-hours credits earned by the net metering system, shall be credited equally to the aggregated meter(s) located on all premises of a Customer at the designated rate of each meter
  5. The Generating Facility is intended to offset either part or all the Customer’s electrical requirements.
  6. On April 30th of each calendar year, any remaining unused kilowatt-hour credit accumulated by the Customer during the previous year (May 1 through April 30) shall be granted to the Utility, without any compensation to the Customer.
  7. Customer accounts must be current prior to application approval and before interconnection to the system and continue to pay any amount owing for electric service provided by the Utility in accordance with applicable rates and policies.

Interruption or Reduction of Deliveries

  1. The Utility may require Customer to interrupt or reduce deliveries as follows:
    1. When necessary, to install, maintain, repair, replace, remove, investigate, or inspect any of its equipment or part of its system.
    2. If it determines that curtailment, interruption, or reduction is necessary because of emergencies, force majeure, or compliance with prudent electrical practices.
  2. Whenever possible, the Utility shall give Customer reasonable notice of the possibility that interruption or reduction of deliveries may be required.
  3. Notwithstanding any other provision of this policy, if at any time the Utility determines that either:
    1. The generating facility may endanger Utility personnel.
    2. The continued operation of Customer's generating facility may endanger the integrity of the Utility's electric system.

The Utility shall have the right to temporarily or permanently disconnect Customer's generating facility from the Utility’s electric system. Customer's generating facility shall remain disconnected until such time as the Utility is satisfied that the condition(s) referenced in this section have been corrected.

Interconnection

  1. Customer shall deliver the excess energy to the Utility at the Utility’s meter.
  2. Customer shall be responsible for designing, installing, inspecting, operating, and maintaining the electric generating facility in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations and shall comply with the Utility’s Interconnection Standards.
  3. Customer shall pay for the Utility’s standard watt-hour meter electrical hook-up, if not already present.
  4. Customer shall not commence parallel operation of the generating facility until written approval of the Interconnection facilities has been given by the Utility. Such approval shall not be unreasonably withheld. The Utility shall have the right to have representatives present at the initial testing of Customer's protective apparatus. Customer shall notify the Utility when testing is to take place.
    1. Customer shall be responsible for designing, installing, inspecting, operating, and maintaining the electric generating facility in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations and shall comply with the Utility’s Interconnection Standards.
    2. Customer shall pay for the Utility’s standard watt-hour meter electrical hook-up, if not already present.
    3. Customer shall not commence parallel operation of the generating facility until written approval of the Interconnection facilities has been given by the Utility. Such approval shall not be unreasonably withheld. The Utility shall have the right to have representatives present at the initial testing of Customer's protective apparatus. Customer shall notify the Utility when testing is to take place.

Maintenance & Permits

The Customer shall:

  1. Maintain the electric generating facility and Interconnection facilities in a safe and prudent manner and in conformance with all applicable laws and regulations including, but not limited to, the Utility’s Interconnection Standards.
  2. Obtain any governmental authorizations and permits required for the construction and operation of the electric generating facility and Interconnection facilities, including electrical permit(s).

Access to Premises

The Utility may enter Customer’s premises or property to:

  1. Inspect Customer's generating facility’s protective devices and metering equipment with prior notice during reasonable hours.
  2. Read meter
  3. Disconnect the Generating Facility at the Customer’s disconnect switch, Utility’s meter or transformer pursuant to Section 3 without notice. This may interrupt normal utility service to the customer.

Liability & Indemnification

  1. The Customer assumes the risk of all damages, loss, cost and expense and shall indemnify the Utility, its successors and assigns, and its respective directors, officers, employees and agents, from and against any and all claims, losses, costs, liabilities, damages and expenses including, but not limited to, reasonable attorney fees, resulting from the Interconnection or use of the Customer’s Generating Facility, which may occur or be sustained by the Utility on account of any claim or action brought against the Utility for any reason including, but not limited to, loss to the electrical system of the Customer caused by or arising out of an electrical disturbance.
  2. Such indemnity, protection, and hold harmless includes any demand, claim, suit or judgment for damages, death or bodily injury to all persons, including officers, employees or agents, and subcontractors of either Party hereto including payment made under or in connection with any Worker’s Compensation Law or under any plan for employees’ disability and death benefits or property loss which may be caused or contributed to by the Interconnection, maintenance, operation, use, presence, or removal of Customer’s equipment. The only exception will be liability occasioned by the sole negligence or willful misconduct of the Utility or its employees acting within the scope of their employment and liability occasioned by a partial negligence of the Utility or its employees acting within the scope of their employment to the extent that such partial liability is fixed by a court of competent jurisdiction.
  3. The provisions of Section 7 shall not be construed to relieve any insurer of its obligations to pay any insurance claims in accordance with the provisions of any insurance policy.
  4. The Utility shall have no liability, ownership interest, control or responsibility for the Customer’s Generating Facility or its Interconnection with the Utility’s electric system, regardless of what the Utility knows or should know about the Customer’s Generating Facility or its Interconnection.
  5. Customer recognizes that it is waiving immunity under Washington Industrial Insurance law, Title 51 RCW, and further agrees that this indemnification clause has been mutually negotiated. This indemnification shall extend to and include attorney’s fees and the costs of establishing the right of indemnification hereunder in favor of the Utility.

Future Modification or Expansion

Any future modification or expansion of the Customer-owned generating facility will require an engineering, safety and reliability review and approval by the Utility. The Utility reserves the right to deny the modification or expansion or to require the Customer, at Customer’s expense, to provide modifications or additions to existing electrical devices including, but not limited to protection device and meters, in the event of changes to government or industry regulation and/or standards.