New Mexico’s Community Solar Program
Originally published on ILSR.org.
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Energy Transition Act (SB 489) in 2019, which introduced the idea of a community solar program, and also mandated that New Mexico move to 50% renewable energy by 2030. However, New Mexico’s community solar program was truly born in 2021, when the Community Solar Act (SB 84) established New Mexico’s official program.
After a three-hour filibuster, the Community Solar Act (SB 84) passed on April 5, 2021. The act authorized community solar projects in the state and requires that 30 percent of each community solar facility serves low-income households. The first three years of the program are capped at 200 megawatts of total generating capacity. This total does not include native community solar projects or rural electric distribution cooperatives. The bill defines “native community solar projects’ ‘ as facilities located on native land that is owned or operated by “an Indian nation, tribe, or pueblo or a tribal entity or in partnership with a third-party entity.” This addresses ILSR’s third principle: that any community solar policy must be additive, rather than detract from any existing renewable energy policy. Subscriptions can supply up to 100% of subscribers’ average annual electricity consumption.
Watch the top state community solar programs progress in our National Community Solar Programs Tracker and click here to find more state program pages.
New Mexico is the second sunniest state in the United States, with an average of 300 days per year of sunshine. This climate makes the state a prime candidate for solar power. Early estimates suggest that New Mexico’s community solar program should be up and running by Spring 2022. The Community Solar Act requires that the Public Regulation Commission finalize the rules process by April 1, 2022.
In addition to investor-owned utilities, third parties can own community solar facilities ( fulfilling the Institute for Local Self Reliance’s second principle of successful community renewable energy, flexibility). The system is regulated through renewable energy certificates. In the case of community solar facilities, these certificates are actually owned by the electric utility to which the facility is interconnected. These certificates may be traded or sold, and serve as proof of compliance with New Mexico’s renewable portfolio standard. The community solar program will help to fulfill New Mexico’s requirement that investor-owned utilities are carbon-free by 2045 and 2050, respectively.
Tangible Benefits
A study by the University of New Mexico’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research predicts that the community solar project will be a massive boost to New Mexico’s economy. For a small state, the numbers are staggering: 3,760 jobs over the next five years, $517 million in economic benefits, $147 million in labor income, and $2.9 million yearly in tax revenue. Community Solar also offers excellent benefits to small and medium sized landowners, like local farms, many of whom do not possess the amount of property necessary to host a full-scale solar plant. Additionally, projects can partner with local farms and offer landowners revenue for leasing space to solar gardens.
In addition to the boons to New Mexico’s economy as a whole, individual subscribers will receive meaningful benefits. Utilities must provide credits to subscribers for at least twenty-five years after interconnection. The credit rate is proportional to the kilowatt-hour production of their share of the facility, and is “derived from the qualifying utility’s aggregate retail rate on a per customer-class basis”. That amount is then credited to the subscriber’s bill from the provider. If a subscriber uses less than their allotted credit’s worth of electricity in a given month, the surplus amount is applied to their next month.
The program has yet to start, but based on these factors and predictions, New Mexico’s plan passes the Institute for Local Self Reliance’s first principle for successful community renewable energy, tangible benefits.
Promoting Indigenous Power
Tribal lands cover 10% of New Mexico, the third highest of any state. There are already multiple small-scale tribal owned solar facilities, including a 115 KW system for the Santo Domingo Tribe. Native community solar gardens are exempted from the overall cap and the individual 100% of average annual consumption limits. The Act states further that “nothing in the Community Solar Act shall preclude an Indian nation, tribe, or pueblo from using financial mechanisms other than subscription models, including virtual and aggregate net-metering, for native community solar projects.
Access To All
Beyond the Indigenous-focused pieces, the program contains further components designed to ensure access for a wide variety of subscribers, fulfilling ILSR’s fourth principle. All subscriber material must be printed in English, Spanish, and, if applicable, native or Indigenous languages. New Mexico’s Public Regulation Commission vows to seek input from a variety of stakeholders, which the Act notes includes “low-income stakeholders … disproportionately impacted communities … (and) Indian nations, tribes, and pueblos.” The program’s 30 percent capacity carveout for low-income subscribers compares favorably with other programs.
For more on solar in New Mexico, check out these ILSR resources:
Learn more about community solar in one of these ILSR reports:
For podcasts, videos, and more, see ILSR’s community renewable energy archive.
This article was originally posted at ilsr.org. For timely updates, follow John Farrell on Twitter or get the Energy Democracy weekly update.
Featured photo credit: formulanone via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Jack Dorsey, co-founder and chief executive officer of Twitter Inc. and Square Inc., listens during the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami, Florida, on Friday, June 4, 2021.
Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Block shares jumped in extended trading on Thursday after the fintech company increased its forecast for the year.
Here is how the company did, compared to analysts’ consensus estimates from LSEG.
- Earnings per share: 62 cents adjusted vs. 69 cents expected
Block doesn’t report a revenue figure, but said gross profit rose 14% from a year earlier to $2.54 billion, beating analysts’ estimates of $2.46 billion for the quarter. Gross payment volume increased 10% to $64.25 billion.
Block raised its guidance for full-year gross profit to $10.17 billion, representing 14% growth from a year earlier. In its prior earnings report, Block said gross profit for the year would come in at $9.96 billion.
The company expects full-year adjusted operating income of $2.03 billion, or a 20% margin. For the third quarter, the company expects gross profit to grow 16% from a year ago to $2.6 billion, with an operating margin of 18%.
Square payment volume in the quarter grew 10% from a year earlier.
Block faces growing competition from rivals such as Toast and Fiserv‘s Clover, though its Square business still gained share during the quarter in areas such as retail and food and beverage.
Block shares were down 10% this year as of Thursday’s close, while the Nasdaq is up 10%. Last month, Block was added to the S&P 500.
— CNBC’s Robert Hum contributed to this report.
Environment
The new Chevy Bolt EV will get cheaper LFP batteries from China’s CATL, at least for now
Until GM builds its own, the new Chevy Bolt EV will use lower-cost LFP batteries from China’s CATL. GM will temporarily lean on CATL to power its most affordable electric vehicle.
The new Chevy Bolt EV will use batteries from China
The new Chevy Bolt EV is set to begin rolling off the production line at GM’s assembly plant in Fairfax, Kansas, later this year.
GM’s CEO Mary Barra promises the new EV will arrive with “substantial improvements,” including longer range, faster charging, and a stylish new look. It will also be the company’s first EV based on the Ultium platform to launch with LFP batteries in North America.
Although the batteries were initially expected to be made in-house, it appears that GM will import them from China, at least for the next few years.
A new report from The Wall Street Journal claims GM will import LFP batteries from CATL to power the new Chevy Bolt EV over the next two years.
According to sources close to the matter, GM will rely on CATL for batteries until it begins producing more affordable EV batteries in collaboration with LG Energy Solutions in 2027.
“To stay competitive, GM will temporarily source these packs from similar suppliers to power our most affordable EV model,” a company spokesperson said. The statement added that “For several years, other US automakers have depended on foreign suppliers for LFP battery sourcing and licensing.”
Ford is licensing technology from CATL to produce LFP batteries in Michigan, which will power its next-generation electric vehicles.
Given Trump’s new tariff and trade policies, GM will face hefty import costs from China. According to Sam Abuelsamid from auto research firm Telemetry, combined with other cost-cutting measures, “the new Bolt with Chinese batteries may still be marginally profitable or “close enough.” He added that “It may be that the economics work for GM to do this on a temporary basis.”
Just over a week ago, Chevy offered a sneak peek at the new Bolt EV with the first teaser images. It’s scheduled to enter production later this year and will arrive at US dealerships in 2026.
Although GM has yet to announce prices and specs, the new Bolt EV is expected to start at around $30,000 with a range of around 300 miles. It will also be the second GM electric vehicle, following the Cadillac Optiq-V, with a built-in NACS port for charging at Tesla Superchargers.
Electrek’s Take
Chinese battery makers, including CATL and BYD, are dominating the global market with lower-cost and more advanced tech.
According to new data from SNE Research, CATL and BYD widened their lead in the first half of 2025. CATL held the top spot with a 37.9% market share while BYD was second at 17.8%.
The combined market share of South Korean battery makers, LG Energy Solution, SK On, and Samsung SDI, fell to 16.4%, a 5.4% decline from the first half of 2024.
Although the deal may work out in GM’s favor, it still highlights the significant gap between US auto and battery makers and their Chinese counterparts.
Meanwhile, GM’s current most affordable electric model, the Chevy Equinox EV, is expected to be among the top three best-selling EVs in the US this year, behind the Tesla Model Y and Model 3. GM calls it “America’s most affordable 315+ range EV” with starting prices under $35,000.
Will the new Bolt EV see the same demand? With prices expected to start at around $30,000, it will be one of the lowest-priced electric vehicles in the US.
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Despite a full lineup of electric models rolling out, Cadillac now plans to keep offering at least one popular gas-powered SUV.
Cadillac XT5 SUV will keep a gas engine in the US
GM’s luxury brand was supposed to go all-electric by the end of the decade. Although it already walked back its commitment last year, Cadillac has now confirmed which popular gas SUV will stick around a while longer.
The Cadillac XT5, the brand’s best-selling vehicle outside of the Escalade, will continue to be sold in North America.
The news was first reported by The Detroit Free Press, which cited a recent memo from GM to UAW workers. Although Cadillac had planned to end XT5 production at the end of the year, GM informed workers that it will continue to be built until the end of 2026.
The current Cadillac XT5 will continue to be sold until the 2027 model year arrives in the US, which will still feature a gas engine.
It could arrive as a potential hybrid, similar to the XT5 sold in China, which features a 2.0L turbocharged engine combined with a 48V electric motor. No fully electric version was mentioned.
GM will continue Cadillac XT5 production in Spring Hill, Tennessee, alongside the Lyriq and Vistiq electric SUVs.
Cadillac claims to be the leading luxury EV brand in the US with a full lineup of electric SUVs. However, that doesn’t include Tesla. The luxury brand now offers the entry-level Optiq, mid-size Lyriq, three-row Vistiq, and even larger Escalade IQ and IQL electric models.
In the first half of the year, nearly 25% of Cadillac vehicles sold in the US were electric. The XT5 was Cadillac’s second-best-selling vehicle, with over 12,700 units sold. The Escalade was its top seller with over 24,300 models sold through June.
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