Interconnection of Small Photovoltaic Systems

The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) has adopted administrative rules governing the interconnection of photovoltaic (PV) systems up to 10 kilowatts (kW) in capacity. The rules apply to all investor-owned utilities (IOUs) in Florida, but not to municipal utilities or rural electric cooperatives. There is no specified limit on enrollment for each utility. The state's IOUs -- Gulf Power, Florida Power & Light Company (FPL), Florida Public Utility, Progress Energy Florida, and Tampa Electric -- have filed standard interconnection agreements with the PSC. These agreements require interconnected customers to comply with Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) safety standards for PV modules and inverters. All customers must have at least $100,000 in liability insurance for interconnected PV systems. Florida's rules allow each utility to specify within its standard interconnection agreement if an external manual disconnect switch is required. Both Gulf Power and FPL require customers to install this equipment at the customer's expense.