National Grid wants to get into the customer acquisition business for community solar projects, which some developers see as an existential threat to the competitive marketplace.

The proposal “effectively creates a default National Grid-branded program with a standard discount, single-product offering that could stifle the competition that has propelled the development of a robust CDG industry in New York and other markets,” wrote the New York Solar Energy Industries Association’s Shyam Mehta in a comment on the plan. “National Grid’s entry into customer acquisition and turnover management could give it an unfair advantage, ultimately stifling competition and innovation in the market.”

NYSEIA’s comments also raise concerns about the reliance of community solar developers on utilities for access to customer data and interconnection approvals, raising a risk for preferential treatment for developers who enroll in the proposed customer acquisition offering.