Time to change Renewable Energy Credits (REC)?

When solar and wind started, RECs were the magic that made them competitive, and a stick that state regulators could use to measure Renewable Portfolio Standards.

RECs can be sold separately from the energy.

RECs could be produced at anytime during the year and used any time during the year. Total made equaled total used.

Solar farms created RECs in the spring, providing cheap power in the low use period of the year.

While in December, the RECs made up for lack of production, allowing businesses to use June RECs to cover non-renewable energy use in the higher usage months.

Early on the totaling mechanism of a REC was not a problem.

California now over generates renewables in some hours to the point of curtailment, in 2021, 1.6 TWH of renewable energy was curtailed (not made), by the end of April this year it was already 1 TWH.

Why, potential energy production by renewables on nice spring days exceeds the ability to use or storage the energy. Market prices are negative during these times.

REC design makes it worse, there is no need to store the power, a REC is good for any time. They can turn a unit of coal energy into renewable energy with the wave of a certificate.

Do RECs deter creating storage and moving the renewable power to the hours it is most needed in?

Do RECs reduce the diversity of the types of renewable energy built in a market?

Should RECs come with a time stamp, that only allows them to be used for that hour of the year?

Should we end RECs and thank them for the jump start they gave the market?