Dive Brief:

• Georgia Power and the state's municipal and cooperative electric utilities are united in opposing a measure in the Legislature that would create a free market for solar power vendors. That was made clear at a hearing Wednesday on legislation challenging their monopoly on selling electricity.
• The bill, HB 657, would boost the chances that new entrants such as Georgia Solar Utilities could compete to supply power to residents and businesses. The company's bid to obtain utility status was rejected by the Georgia Public Service Commission.

Dive Insight: 

Backers of the bill claim it would lead to lower power costs for Georgians while utilities say the measure could compromise grid reliability. Georgia currently gets less than 2% of its power from renewables.