All renewable energy used for a Zero Energy Certification project must be produced directly on-site. On-site installations are those within the Project Boundary. All renewable energy systems must be:
- Additional;
- From allowed sources;
- Attributed to the project;
- Educational;
- Identifiable; and
- Metered.
The following paragraphs provide detailed guidance regarding these attributes along with additional clarifications.
Additionality
Renewable energy assemblies and infrastructure must provide additionality, i.e., create new renewable energy capacity that would not otherwise exist but for the actions of and investments attributed to the project. They must also fall within the Project Boundary. Each project has to be directly responsible for the creation of renewable energy infrastructure even if it is placed in another location (see Scale Jumping Clarifications).
Claimed renewable energy systems cannot pre-date the project unless it can be demonstrated that:
- Systems were pre-planned for utilization and attribution to additional buildings; and
- Attribution to the project does not displace the utilization or attribution of those resources by another project. Building Renovations may count renewables that were already serving the project as long as attribution to the project doesn’t displace existing claims for any shared renewables.
Allowed Sources
Renewable energy is defined as passive solar, photovoltaics, solar thermal, wind turbines, water-powered microturbines, direct geothermal, or fuel cells powered by hydrogen generated from renewably powered electrolysis. Project teams proposing to use a renewable energy technology other than what is indicated here must submit a Request for Ruling for preapproval. It is not acceptable to measure a project’s performance by including the savings from another building that is outside the Project Boundary or the scope of the certification without pursuing a relevant Exception.
Attribution
Renewables for the project must be shown to be solely attributed to the project (not double-counted) through ownership or contractual agreement, for a period of at least 15 years from the date of construction completion. Payment for the renewable energy claimed, if not provided from the owner, must be made on behalf of the project. If using Scale Jumping, see Scale Jumping Clarifications for additional details.
Educational
The generation of renewable energy systems must be highlighted and explained at the project site. Educational strategies may include signage, informational displays, building automation system (BAS) dashboards, or virtual tours of the systems.
Identifiable
All renewable energy systems must be physically identifiable, meaning they must be a contiguous installation with a known location and attributes, rather than a generalized power purchase.
Metered
On-site renewable energy systems must be directly metered to record current energy output in real-time and throughout the year. Directly owned on-site renewables must operate during the entire performance period.
Renewable Energy Ownership
When third-party ownership of renewable energy systems is allowed, it must feed the project directly and have a contract for 15 years minimum. In these instances, acceptable forms of renewable energy ownership include:
- Direct ownership
- Indirect ownership
- Community Solar;
- Renewable Energy Investment Fund; or
- Power purchase agreement (PPA or vPPA).
- Other forms approved by ILFI through a Request for Ruling that are consistent with the intent of the certification.
Note that the purchasing of unbundled renewable energy certificates (RECs) is not an acceptable form of procurement.
Regulatory Barriers
If project teams face regulatory barriers, such as net-metering limitations, they may be eligible to pursue a relevant Exception.
Scale Jumping
Although projects are encouraged to achieve an energy balance with their site boundary, project teams may be eligible to utilize Scale Jumping in order to meet this requirement.
Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) generated from the claimed systems:
