Apple has just become an energy company, looks to sell excess electricity into the grid and maybe more

Update: John Weaver did a deeper dive on this over at Electrek

Apple has quietly created an energy subsidiary, ‘Apple Energy’ LLC, registered in Delaware but run from its Cupertino headquarters. The company was seemingly formed to allow it to sell excess electricity generated by its solar farms in Cupertino and Nevada, with plans to sell electricity across the whole of the US.

[Apple Energy LLC] is a Delaware limited liability company and is a 100% wholly owned subsidiary of Apple Inc. [Contact is] Apple Energy LLC, One Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014

Given Apple’s expertise and huge commitment to using renewable energy to power its operations, it is no surprise that it wants to ensure that its solar farms generate sufficient power to meet its needs. Because the sun only shines during the day obviously, Apple needs to shift its generation and its usage. Data centers need to go 24/7. Apple Stores are open in the evening. Apple has alternatives for this at its campus (see Fuel Cell generation below) but if it wants to operate 100% renewable, it has to “trade” overcapacity during the middle of the day for “net-metered” energy during the evening or cloudy days.

Apple’s Cupertino Campus 2 Photovoltaics are rated at 14 megawatts alone.

But a set of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission filings suggests that Apple could have bigger ambitions in the power field …

Currently, when private companies sell their excess power, they can only do so to energy companies – and they often (varies by state) have to sell at wholesale rates. What Apple seemingly could to do, however, is sell directly to end-users at market rates. In other words, get paid retail prices for its excess power.

Currently companies like Green Mountain Power can sell green renewable energy to homeowners all over the US. It wouldn’t be a stretch to see Apple do this as a product in the future.

Apple has told the FERC that it meets the legal criteria for selling electricity at market rates because it is not a major player in the energy business and thus has no power to influence electricity prices. It has requested permission begin within 60 days of its filing on 6th June.

What else could come out of the subsidiary ‘Apple Energy’ company? With Apple’s electric car project still in development, a recent report highlighted Apple’s interest in charging stations for ‘refueling’ their future EV (and other EVs?) so it’s possible this project could be a focus of Apple’s energy experts in the future.

We’re going to take a deeper dive into this as soon as possible here on 9to5Mac and on Electrek.

Ben Lovejoy and John Weaver contributed to this report. Apple filing pasted below:

Apple Energy LLC

Market-Based Rate Tariff

1. Availability.  Apple Energy LLC (Seller) makes wholesale electric energy and capacity available under this Tariff to any purchaser for resale except as prohibited below.  Seller may also make available to any purchaser the ancillary services listed below:

a. California ISO:  Seller offers regulation service, spinning reserve service, and non-spinning reserve service to the California Independent System Operator Corporation (CAISO) and to others that are self-supplying ancillary services to the CAISO.

b. New York ISO: Seller offers regulation and frequency response service, and operating reserve service (which include 10-minute non-synchronous, 30-minute operating reserves, 10-minute spinning reserves, and 10-minute non-spinning reserves) for sale to purchasers in the market administered by the New York Independent System Operator, Inc.

c. Midcontinent ISO: Seller offers regulation service and operating reserve service (which includes 10-minute spinning reserve and 10-minute supplemental reserve) for sale to the Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc. (“Midcontinent ISO”) and to others that are self-supplying ancillary services to Midcontinent ISO.

d. New England ISO: Seller offers regulation and frequency response service (automatic generator control), operating reserve service (which includes 10-minute spinning reserve, 10-minute non-spinning reserve, and 30-minute operating reserve service) to purchasers within the markets administered by the ISO New England, Inc.

e. PJM Interconnection: Seller offers regulation and frequency response service, energy imbalance service, and operating reserve service (which includes spinning, 10-minute, and 30-minute reserves) for sale into the market administered by PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (“PJM”) and, where the PJM Open Access Transmission Tariff permits, the self-supply of these services to purchasers for a bilateral sale that is used to satisfy the ancillary services requirements of the PJM Office of Interconnection.

f. Southwest Power Pool: Seller offers regulation service and operating reserve service (which include 10-minute spinning reserve and 10-minute supplemental reserve) for sale to the Southwest Power Pool, Inc. (“SPP”) and to others that are self-supplying ancillary services to SPP.

g. Third Party Provider.  Seller offers Regulation Service, Reactive Supply and Voltage Control Service, Energy and Generator Imbalance Service, Operating Reserve-Spinning, Operating Reserve-Supplemental, and Primary Frequency Response Service.  Sales will not include the following: (1) sales to an RTO or an ISO, i.e., where that entity has no ability to self-supply ancillary services but instead depends on third parties; and (2) sales to a traditional, franchised public utility affiliated with the third-party supplier, or sales where the underlying transmission service is on the system of the public utility affiliated with the third-party supplier. Sales of Operating Reserve-Spinning and Operating Reserve-Supplemental will not include sales to a public utility that is purchasing ancillary services to satisfy its own open access transmission tariff requirements to offer ancillary services to its own customers, except where the Commission has granted authorization.  Sales of Regulation and Frequency Response Service and Reactive Supply and Voltage Control Service will not include sales to a public utility that is purchasing ancillary services to satisfy its own open access transmission tariff requirements to offer ancillary services to its own customers, except at rates not to exceed the buying public utility transmission provider’s OATT rate for the same service or where the Commission has granted authorization.

2. Applicability.  This Tariff is applicable to all wholesale sales of energy, capacity and ancillary services by Seller that are (1) subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission, and (2) not made pursuant to another tariff on file with the Commission.

3. Rates.  All sales shall be made at rates established by agreement between the purchaser and Seller.

4. Other Terms and Conditions.  All other terms and conditions shall be established by agreement between the purchaser and Seller.

5. Compliance with Commission Regulations.  Seller shall comply with the provisions of 18 CFR Part 35, Subpart H, as applicable, and with any conditions the Commission imposes in its orders concerning Seller’s market-based rate authority, including orders in which the Commission authorizes Seller to engage in affiliate sales under this Tariff or otherwise restricts or limits the Seller’s market-based rate authority.  Failure to comply with the applicable provisions of 18 CFR Part 35, Subpart H, and with any orders of the Commission concerning Seller’s market-based rate authority, will constitute a violation of this Tariff.

6. Limitations and Exemptions Regarding Market-Based Rate Authority.  The Commission has granted Seller in Docket No. ER16-__-000 the following waivers and blanket authorization: (i) waivers of Parts 41and 141 (except for Sections 141.14 and 141.15) of the Commission’s accounting and periodic reporting requirements; and (ii) waiver of the accounting and related reporting requirements under Part 101, with the exception that waiver of the provisions that apply to hydropower licensees has not been granted with respect to licensed hydropower projects; and (iii) waivers of Subparts B and C of Part 35 of the Commission’s regulations, except for Sections 35.12(a), 35.13(b), 35.15 and 35.16; and (iv) blanket authorization under Section 204 of the FPA and Part 34 of the Commission’s regulations for all future issuances of securities and debt and assumptions of liability.   See Apple Energy LLC, Docket No. ER16________.

7. Seller Category.  Seller is a Category 1 seller in all regions, as defined in 18 C.F.R. § 35.36(a).

8. Effective Date.  This Tariff is effective on such date as set by the Commission.