How RECs Work—and Why You Might Not Own Your Clean Energy

Many building owners want to use a clean energy source and qualify for various state and federal tax credits and incentives. Often, though, they are unable to do so because they can’t support enough onsite generation to power the building. Other times, they have space for onsite generation but can’t afford the first costs. Community energy projects (often called solar farms or solar gardens) and power purchase agreements (PPAs) are good options in these cases.

Ownership rights can get complicated with both these types of contracts, though.