Announcements


W&S-108: Suppose that I have a 10 MW solar project with an annual quantity of 13,000 RECs. Could I please confirm the fees that I will have to pay for that Project? My understanding is that I will have to pay: (i) A bid participation fee of $500; (ii) supplier fees of: $1 x 13,000 = $13,000; (iii) assuming a winning REC price of $10, bid assurance collateral of 50% of annual contract value, namely 50% of (13,000 x $10) = $65,000. Can you confirm that my total fees in this example would be $78,500 and that there are no other charges or fees to be paid to IPA or the utilities?

Your understanding of fees associated with your project is not completely correct. We take each fee that you mention in turn.

Your understanding of the Bid Participation Fee is correct. Each participant in the Wind and Solar RFP will be required to pay a non-refundable Bid Participation Fee of $500 (unless such participant has already paid a Bid Participation Fee in 2017 pursuant to its participation in a prior 2017 procurement event). A participant that presents several projects is only required to pay a single Bid Participation Fee.

Your understanding of the Supplier Fee is correct based on the estimate of the Supplier Fee of $1 for each REC of the annual quantity provided during the webcast of July 19. Please note that this is an estimate only and that the final level of the Supplier Fee will be announced no later than two business days prior to the Bid Date.  Please also note that the Supplier Fee is levied only on those projects with bids approved by the Illinois Commerce Commission.

Your understanding of the bid assurance collateral requirement is incorrect. The bid assurance collateral for a Project consists of either cash or a letter of credit to each AIC, ComEd, and MidAmerican as a requirement of the Part 2 Proposal. The amount of bid assurance collateral required for a Project is determined separately for each Company.  For a 10 MW solar project:

  • The amount of bid assurance collateral required for a Solar Project by AIC is $4,000/MW for a total of $40,000.
  • The amount of bid assurance collateral required for a Solar Project by ComEd is $10,000/MW for a total of $100,000.
  • The amount of bid assurance collateral required by MEC is $30,000 regardless of the size of the Project.

Thus the total bid assurance collateral required is $170,000. Please note that this is not a “fee” to the project as bid assurance collateral is returned to the bidder or expires after completion of the procurement event.

The calculation in your question at 50% of the annual contract value is not the level of the bid assurance collateral but rather the Collateral Requirement that is due upon contract execution. The Collateral Requirement increases to 100% of the Annual Contract Value on June 1, 2019. The increase happens regardless of when the project becomes operational or when the first REC is delivered. In your example above, the Collateral Requirement would be equal to 50% of (13,000 x $10.00) = $65,000 until June 1, 2019 when it increases to $130,000. The Collateral Requirement, like the bid assurance collateral, is not a “fee” as the Collateral Requirement is returned to the seller or expires at the end of the contract.

We confirm that there are no other fees due to the IPA or the utilities under the terms of the RFP Rules or the terms of the REC Contract. We do not itemize any fee or costs associated with the development of the project or with interconnection.