Connecticut IOU’s express intent to suspend small generator insurance practice

CONNECTICUT – In August, the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control acknowledged receipt of a letter from Connecticut’s two investor-owned utilities – Connecticut Light and Power Company (CL&P) and United Illuminating Company (UI) – in which they informed the DPUC that they intend to suspend the practice of tracking the insurance requirement for small generator interconnections of 10 kW or less. The insurance requirement was a result of the Guidelines for Interconnection, in a DPUC decision dated December 5, 2007. The utilities state that the insurance limit for these small generators is only $300,000 and the insurance certificates are gathered for informational purposes only. Additionally, the utilities state that there is a significant administrative burden and inefficiency placed on them to track and maintain the insurance certificates for the increasing number of small generators. The utilities noted that there is no need for a change to the guidelines, as suspension of the tracking is only a change to the utilities’ internal practices.

The DPUC noted that the generators covered by the utilities’ request present relatively low risk and impact to their facilities. Given the large number of them proliferating throughout their service territories (particularly residential PV installations), the DPUC stated that tracking the insurance certificates likely provides little value for the expended effort. They also stated however, that because the interconnection guidelines require customers to provide utilities with proof of insurance, the utilities are expected to review the evidence that customers provide.

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