Law 54/1997, of 27 November, of the Electrical Sector, establishes the principles of a new operating model based on free competition, also promoting the development of energy production facilities. Special scheme for electricity.

Royal Decree 2818/1998 of 23 December 1998 on the production of electrical energy by facilities supplied by resources or sources of renewable energy, waste and cogeneration, develops the Law in this respect, establishing a new operating framework for these types of energy sources, including solar photovoltaic energy.

In that Royal Decree, the procedure for the inclusion of an electrical energy production plant in the special scheme, its economic regime or the conditions for the delivery of electrical energy is included in this Royal Decree. produced in such facilities. With regard to the operation and connection to electrical networks, it is established in Article 20.1 that installations which only use as primary energy, solar energy, shall have administrative and technical standards for operation and connection to the specific electricity networks in respect of the other special arrangements, while respecting the general criteria laid down therein.

According to this, the purpose of this provision is to effect the development of Law 54/1997, by establishing the basic administrative and technical conditions of connection to the low voltage network of the Photovoltaic solar installations, taking into account their special characteristics and with the aim of establishing a specific regulation to allow the development of this activity.

Finally, this rule declares the basic character of the rule, in accordance with the provisions of article 149.1.25.a of the Constitution that attributes the State to the competence to lay the foundations of the mining and energy regime.

In its virtue, on the proposal of the Minister of Economy, in agreement with the Council of State and after deliberation of the Council of Ministers at its meeting of the day of September 29, 2000,

D I S P O N G O:

CHAPTER I

Scope and definitions

Article 1. Scope of application.

This Royal Decree shall apply to photovoltaic installations of rated power not exceeding 100 kVA and whose connection to the distribution network is carried out in low voltage. For this purpose, a low voltage connection means a connection which is carried out in a voltage not exceeding 1 kV.

Article 2. Definitions.

1. For the purposes of this Royal Decree,

following definitions shall apply:

(a) PV installations: those with photovoltaic modules (VF) for the direct conversion of solar radiation into electrical energy, without any intermediate step.

b) Interconnected PV installations:

those that typically work in parallel with the network of the distribution company.

c) Line and connection point and measure: the connection line is the power line by which the photovoltaic installations are connected to a point in the network of the distribution company or to the user's connection, called connection point and measure.

d) Automatic Interconnection Switch:

automatic cutting device on which the interconnection protections act.

e) General switch: security and maneuver device that allows the photovoltaic installation of the network of the distribution company to be separated.

f) Power of the PV installation or rated power: is the sum of the power of the investors involved in the three phases of the installation under nominal operating conditions.

For the purposes of the provisions of Royal Decree 2818/1998 of 23 December 1998 on the production of electrical energy by resources or sources of renewable energy, waste and cogeneration, and in Decree 2413/1973, of 20 December September, for which the electrotechnical regulation for low voltage is approved, the rated power will be considered as installed power.

g) Holder of the installation: natural or legal person who legally holds the rights and obligations arising from the inclusion of the installation in the special electrical energy production regime, which may be, according to with Royal Decree 2818/1998, the owner, the tenant or the owner of any other right which links him to the operation of the installation.

2. The installers authorized for the installations referred to in this Royal Decree, as well as the procedure for obtaining the corresponding certificate of professionalism, are those regulated in Royal Decree 2224/1998, of 16 October, by the certificate of professionalism of the occupation of the installer of small-power photovoltaic and wind systems, without prejudice to the autonomous regulations that are applicable.

As long as Royal Decree 2224/1998 is not developed, the electrotechnical regulation for low voltage will be applied, approved by Decree 2413/1973 of 20 September.

CHAPTER II Connection of photovoltaic installations to the low voltage network

Article 3. Request.

The owner of the installation or, if applicable, the one who intends to acquire this condition, will ask the company to distribute the point and technical connection conditions necessary for the realization of the project or the documentation installation technique, as appropriate depending on the installed power. The request will be accompanied by the following information:

a) Name, address, telephone or other means of contact.

b) Installation situation.

c) Unifile installation of the installation.

d) The proposed point for making the connection.

e) Technical characteristics of the installation including the peak power of the panel field and the nominal power of the installation; description, connection modes and characteristics of the inverter or inverters; and description of the intended protection devices and connection elements.

In the event that any additional documentation is required, the distribution company will request it within ten days of receipt of the request, justifying the origin of the request. request.

Article 4. Determination of the technical conditions of the connection.

1. Within one month of receipt of the request, the distribution company shall notify the applicant of its proposal relating to the conditions of connection, including at least the following:

a) Connection point and proposed measure.

b) Maximum and minimum nominal voltage of the network at the point of connection.

c) Expected short circuit power on normal operation at the point of connection.

(d) Maximum nominal power available for connection at that point, in relation to the transport capacity of the line or, where appropriate, the processing capacity of the processing centre.

e) In the event that the connection point and measure for the transfer of energy by the owner of the installation is different from the point of reception, the supporting report of this circumstance.

2. In the case where the maximum available nominal power of connection is lower than the power of the photovoltaic installation, the distribution undertaking shall determine the particular elements of the network which it needs to modify to match both powers. The costs of the modifications shall be borne by the operator of the installation unless they are not exclusively for his/her service, in which case they shall be divided by mutual agreement. In the event of a discrepancy, the competent authority shall decide within a maximum period of three months from the request for its intervention.

3. If the distributor does not make the notification within the time limit referred to in this Article, the person concerned may request the intervention of the competent authority which shall require the data referred to. The competent authority shall forward this information to the operator of the installation.

The lack of demand for the requested data within 15 days of the notification of your complaint by the competent authority may be considered an administrative infringement, according to the Articles 60.11 and 61.1 of Law 54/1997 of 27 November of the Electrical Sector.

4. The proposal made by the distribution company on the point and conditions of connection shall remain in force for a period of one year from the date of notification to the operator of the installation.

5. In the event of disagreement with the conditions proposed by the distribution company, the applicant may, in accordance with Article 20.2 of Royal Decree 2818/1998, contact the competent authority for the purpose of the resolution of the (i) a discrepancy establishing the conditions which the parties will have to respect The decision shall be taken within a maximum of three months after the request has been requested.

For the resolution of the conflict, the criterion of giving the lowest possible cost to the owner of the installation, meeting the established technical requirements, will be used.

Article 5. Conclusion of the contract.

1. The owner of the installation and the distribution company shall enter into a contract for which the technical and economic relations between the two shall be governed. The standard contract model will be established by the Directorate General for Energy Policy and Mines, as provided for in Article 17 of Royal Decree 2818/1998.

2. Once the point and the conditions of connection have been agreed, the distribution company will have the obligation to subscribe to this contract within a maximum period of one month from the time it is required by the applicant.

3. Any discrepancy on the contract to be concluded shall be settled by the competent authority within a maximum of one month from the request for intervention by one of the parties.

Article 6. Connection to the network and first verification.

1. Once the tests of the installation carried out by the approved installer have been exceeded, the installer shall issue a bulletin of main features of the installation and of overcoming those tests.

If it is necessary to connect the photovoltaic installation to the network for testing, this connection will be provisional in order to communicate to the distribution company.

2. Once the installation has been completed, the contract has been signed and the bulletin of overcoming the tests of the installation will be completed, the owner of the installation will be able to ask the company to distribute the connection to the network, for which the necessary the presentation of the bulletin.

3. The distribution company may at any time carry out a first verification on those elements which affect the regularity and security of supply, whereby the holder of the installation shall receive the payment of the rights provided for in the rules in force.

4. After one month from the request for connection to the network without any objections to the distribution company, the operator may make the connection to the distribution network.

5. The distribution company shall forward to the competent authority of the Administration, with a copy to the National Energy Commission, during the first month of each year a list of the facilities put into service during the previous year in its field. territorial, with expression for each of the holder, sites and peak and nominal power 6. If, as a result of the verification, the distribution company finds an impact on the interconnection equipment or on the installation itself, it shall, if appropriate, inform the operator of the installation on the same, giving it a period of time. sufficient for them to be resolved.

7. In the event of disconformity, the operator or the distributor may request the precise inspections and the decision of the competent authority of the competent authority, which in the case of connection with the network of the distribution has not been carried out, it must be resolved within a maximum period of one month after the request has been made.

Article 7. Obligations of the operator of the installation.

1. The owner of the photovoltaic installation is responsible for maintaining the installation in perfect operating conditions, as well as for the protection and interconnection devices.

Distributor companies may propose to the competent administration, for approval, verification programmes of the elements of facilities that may affect regularity and security in the supply, to be carried out by them, without prejudice to any other verification programmes which may be established by the competent authorities in the exercise of their powers.

These verifications within the program of verifications that the distribution companies may voluntarily propose, will be in charge of them.

2. In the event that there has been a network breakdown or an important disturbance related to the installation and supporting it in advance, the distribution company may verify the installation without the need for prior authorisation of the installation. competent authority. For these purposes, it is important to be understood as a major disturbance affecting the distribution network by making the supply to users not the product quality limits established for this case by the existing rules 3. In the event that a photovoltaic installation disturbs the operation of the distribution network, in breach of the established limits of electromagnetic compatibility, quality of service or any other aspect included in the regulations The distribution company shall inform the competent authority and the operator of the installation so that the deficiencies shall be addressed within the maximum period of 70 and two hours.

If the incident persists, the distribution company will be able to disconnect the installation, immediately giving the account to the competent administration. In this case, once the causes causing the disturbance have been eliminated, the installation operator must present the justification to the electrical company and the competent administration to the network. signed by a competent technician or an approved installer, as appropriate, in which, where appropriate, the review carried out shall be described.

In the event of a lack of agreement between the operator of the facility and the distribution company regarding the existence and cause of the disturbances, the conflict may be submitted by one of the parties to the competent administration for which is to be resolved within a period of one month.

4. The operator of the installation shall have a means of communication immediately contacting the control centres of the distribution network with those responsible for the operation of the photovoltaic installations.

CHAPTER III

Technical conditions of the photovoltaic installations connected to the network at low voltage

Article 8. Technical conditions of a general nature.

1. The operation of the photovoltaic installations referred to in this Royal Decree must not cause in the network breakdowns, decreases in the safety conditions or alterations higher than those admitted by the regulations which, according to with the unique additional provision of this Royal Decree, is applicable.

Furthermore, the operation of these facilities may not give rise to hazardous working conditions for the maintenance and operation staff of the distribution network.

2. In the event that the distribution line is disconnected from the network, either due to maintenance work required by the distribution company or to any protection of the line, the photovoltaic installations must not be maintain tension in the distribution line.

3. The conditions for connection to the network shall be set according to the power of the photovoltaic system in order to avoid harmful effects on users with sensitive loads.

4. In order to establish the point of connection to the distribution network, account shall be taken of the transport capacity of the line, the power installed in the processing centres and the distributions in different stages of generators under special arrangements. provided by monofasic investors.

5. In the generation circuit up to the measurement equipment, no element of generation other than photovoltaic, nor of accumulation or consumption, may be interspersed.

6. In the event that a photovoltaic installation is affected by disturbances of the distribution network, the current regulations on quality of service will apply.

Article 9. Specific conditions for interconnection.

1. Low voltage PV installations may be interconnected provided that the sum of their rated powers does not exceed 100 kVA. The sum of the powers of the special facilities connected to a low voltage line shall not exceed half of the transport capacity of that line at the point of connection, defined as the thermal capacity of the design of the line on that point. In the case where the connection is to be made in a processing centre, the sum of the powers of the special facilities connected to that centre shall not exceed half of the processing capacity installed for that centre. level of tension. In the event of disagreement, the provisions of Article 4.5 of this Royal Decree will apply.

2. If the nominal power of the photovoltaic installation to connect to the distribution network is greater than 5 kW, the connection of the photovoltaic installation to the network shall be three-phase. Such a connection may be made by one or more monofasic investors up to 5 kW, at different stages, or directly a three-phase inverter.

3. In the connection of a photovoltaic installation, the voltage variation caused by the connection and disconnection of the photovoltaic installation shall not exceed 5 per 100 and shall not cause any user of the network connected to the exceeding the limits indicated in the Electrotechnical Regulation for low voltage.

4. The power factor of the energy supplied to the distribution company must be as close as possible to the unit. Photovoltaic installations connected in parallel with the network must take the necessary measures to do so or, where appropriate, reach an agreement on this aspect with the distribution company.

Article 10. Measures and invoicing.

1. Where electrical consumption is in place on the same site as the photovoltaic installation, they shall be placed in independent circuits of the electrical circuits of that photovoltaic installation and of its measuring equipment. The measure of such consumption will be carried out with own and independent equipment, which will serve as a basis for its billing.

The output counter will have the ability to measure both senses, and, failing that, will connect between the output counter and the general switch an input counter. The electrical energy that the operator of the installation will charge to the distribution company shall be the difference between the electrical power of output minus the input power to the photovoltaic installation. In the case of installation of two meters there will be no need for a supply contract for the photovoltaic installation.

All elements of the measurement equipment, both input and power output, will be sealed by the distribution company.

The authorized installer may only open the seals with the written consent of the distribution company. However, in case of danger, the seals may be removed without the consent of the electrical company; in this case it is mandatory to inform the distribution company immediately.

2. The placement of the meter and measuring equipment and in their case of the hourly switching devices that may be required and the safety conditions shall be in accordance with the MIE BT O15.

The positions of the counters must be marked indelibly, so that the assignment to each holder of the installation is clear without confusion. In addition, it shall be indicated, for each operator of the installation, whether it is an energy input meter from the distribution company or an energy output meter from the PV installation.

The counters will conform to the current metrological regulations and their accuracy must be at least that corresponding to that of precision class 2, regulated by Royal Decree 875/1984, of March 28, for which the Regulation for the approval of a model and a primitive verification of current-use meters (class 2) in direct connection, new, at a simple rate or at multiple rates, for the measurement of energy in single-phase or polyphase current frequency 50 Hz.

3. The characteristics of the exit measurement equipment shall be such that the intensity corresponding to the rated power of the PV installation is between 50 per 100 of the nominal intensity and the maximum precision intensity of the PV installation. equipment.

4. Where the holder of the installation is in charge of the method of invoicing which takes account of the final average price of the electricity production market, as defined in Article 24 (1) of Royal Decree 2818/1998, of 23 December 1998, In December, the Regulation on the measurement of electrical energy consumption and transit, and its development provisions, shall apply.

Article 11. Protections.

The system of protection must meet the requirements of the regulations in force. This compliance shall be adequately accredited in the documentation relating to the characteristics of the installation referred to in Article 3, including the following:

1. Manual general switch, which will be a magnetothermal switch with short circuit intensity higher than that indicated by the distribution company at the point of connection. This switch will be accessible to the distribution company at all times, in order to be able to perform manual disconnection.

2. Differential automatic switch, in order to protect people in the case of derivation of some element from the continuous part of the installation.

3. Automatic switch of the interconnection, for the disconnection-automatic connection of the photovoltaic installation in case of loss of voltage or frequency of the net, next to a relay of interlock.

4. Protection for the maximum and minimum frequency interconnection (51 and 49 Hz respectively) and maximum and minimum voltage (1,1 and 0,85 Um respectively).

5. Such protection may be sealed by the distributor, following the checks referred to in Articles 6 and 7.

6. The rearmament of the switching system and, therefore, of the connection with the low voltage network of the photovoltaic system will be automatic, once the network voltage has been restored by the distribution company.

7. The maximum and minimum voltage protection and minimum frequency protection functions may be integrated into the inverter equipment, and in such case the automatic disconnection-connection manoeuvres shall be performed by the latter. In this case only manual switch and differential automatic switch protection will be further provided, if the following conditions are met:

(a) The functions shall be performed by a contactor whose rearmament shall be automatic, once the normal conditions of supply of the network are restored.

(b) The contactor, normally governed by the investor, may be activated manually.

c) The status of the contactor ("on/off") , it should be clearly marked on the front of the team, in a prominent place.

(d) In the event that the seals are not used for the maximum and minimum frequency and maximum and minimum voltage interconnection referred to in this Article, the manufacturer of the inverter must certify:

1.o The Tension Tare Values.

2.o The frequency tare values.

3.o The type and characteristics of equipment used internally for fault detection (model, brand, calibration, etc.).

4.o That the investor has exceeded the corresponding tests as regards the limits of the established voltage and frequency.

While, in accordance with the final provision of this Royal Decree, the technical instructions for carrying out the said tests have not been given, all of them will be accepted. the effects of the established procedures and the certificates carried out by the equipment manufacturers themselves.

e) In the event that the protection functions are performed by a software "software" of operations control, the physical seals shall be replaced by certifications of the manufacturer of the inverter, in which it is mentioned explicitly that the program is not accessible to the user of the installation.

Article 12. Conditions for the grounding of photovoltaic installations.

The grounding of interconnected photovoltaic installations will always be done in a way that does not alter the grounding conditions of the network of the distribution company, ensuring that no transfers of defects to the distribution network.

The installation must have a galvanic separation between the low voltage distribution network and

PV installations, either by means of an isolation transformer or any other medium that meets the same functions, based on technological development.

The masses of the photovoltaic system will be connected to a land independent of that of the neutral of the distribution company according to the electrotechnical regulation for low voltage, as well as the masses of the rest of the supply.

Article 13. Harmonics and electromagnetic compatibility.

The emission and immunity levels must comply with the regulations in force, including in the documentation referred to in Article 3 the certificates that prove it.

Single additional disposition. Application of supplementary rules.

In all that is not foreseen by this Royal Decree, the solar photovoltaic installations connected to the low voltage grid will be governed by Royal Decree 2818/1998, of 23 December, and by the regulations and other provisions in force for them to apply. However, the Order of the Ministry of Industry and Energy of 5 September 1985 on administrative and technical standards for the operation and connection to power grids of hydroelectric power plants up to 5,000 shall not apply to them. kVA and power-generating plants.

PV installations shall not be required to comply with other technical requirements than those required by the rules referred to in the preceding paragraph.

Final disposition first. Basic character.

This Royal Decree is of a basic nature under the provisions of Article 149.1.25.a of the Constitution.

Final disposition second. Regulatory enablement.

By the Minister of Economy, prior to the report of the National Energy Commission, the technical instructions for establishing the procedure for carrying out the test referred to in Article 11 (7) (d) shall be issued. of this Royal Decree, as well as to establish the verification rights referred to in Articles 6 and 7 of this Royal Decree.

Final disposition third. Entry into force.

This Royal Decree shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the "Official Gazette of the State".

Given in Madrid on September 29, 2000.

JOHN CARLOS R.

The Second Vice President of the Government for Economic Affairs and Minister of Economy, RODRIGO DE RATO Y FIGAREDO