International Best Practices for Implementing and Designing Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) Policies

Renewable energy (RE) targets have been around since the 1970s and have taken a number of forms, such as renewable energy action plans, government announcements, renewable portfolio standards and others. In this report, we focus on one subset of renewable energy targets: renewable portfolio standards (RPS). In the electricity sector, an RPS is a public policy tool in which a required amount of renewable energy relative to the entire energy mix is used to generate electricity connected to the electrical grid. RPSs are an enforceable form of RE targets; if the compliance entity does not perform, a penalty is assessed. In order to ensure successful implementation of RPS and other policies, the Government of Vietnam requested this policy study examining effective RPS policies globally. The purpose of this document is to provide an overview of RPSs internationally, highlighting key design elements and best practices. The paper includes a discussion of the other polices that can support RPS fulfillment. The paper draws on case examples from the U.S., Mexico, China, Korea, Australia, and the Philippines.