CA Current

The many Teslas I see driving down I-5 to San Diego are sleek, shiny, and new. Whatever you think about blunt-smoking Elon Musk, there’s little doubt he’s made cars that solve many of the problems that long hampered the advance of the electric vehicle. Now, his work—and that of many others in the auto industry—have […]

This week, President Mike Picker presided over his last California Public Utilities Commission meeting. In response to kudos from fellow commissioners and others for his six years of work at the CPUC, Picker said he does not believe in legacies. “I’m not a judge of what’s right or wrong, but I hope everyone here [at […]

The California Energy Commission applauded California’s new Reliability Coordinator: the California Independent System Operator. “This is a step in the direction we need to go to integrate” the various western grid transmission activities, including decarbonization, said Commissioner Andrew McAllister at the CEC’s Aug. 14 meeting. On July 1, the CAISO became the state-wide reliability coordinator, […]

Pacific Gas & Electric appointed a new utility chief executive officer and president. Andrew Vesey was selected to head the bankrupt utility, PG&E announced Aug. 13. Vesey was the managing director and chief executive officer of AGL Energy in Australia from 2015 to 2018. The prior 11 years, he served as AES Corp.’s chief executive […]

State officials and top automakers late last month agreed on a voluntary framework for continuing to reduce vehicular greenhouse gas emissions. The pact came as the Trump Administration is preparing to freeze standards at existing emissions levels and revoke the right of California to set its own emissions standards that are tighter than federal requirements. […]

As demand for lithium ion batteries grows with the increasing popularity of electric and hybrid cars, how to handle spent batteries is a growing concern, the U.S. Senate Environment & Public Works Committee heard on July 17. “The global market for electric vehicles is expected to rise in coming years,” said Sen. John Barasso (R-WY), […]

The California Energy Commission awarded $70 million July 15 to replace 200 old diesel school buses with all-electric buses at schools throughout the state. “Making the transition to electric school buses that don’t emit pollution provides children and their communities with cleaner air and numerous public health benefits,” said Energy Commissioner Patty Monahan. The electric […]

Updated July 18. The California Energy Commission’s clean transportation program to date has provided $830 million in funding, with most of the money targeted at advancing the use of electric vehicles, according to a summary presented at a commission meeting on the program’s accomplishments July 18. In the clean vehicle infrastructure area, CEC has provided […]

Gov. Gavin Newsom joined with 23 governors to call for maintaining tight federal clean car standards July 9 in the face of a proposed rollback of existing federal requirements by the Trump Administration. “Flawed federal policy is forcing motorists to pay more at the pump, get worse gas mileage, and breathe dirtier air,” said Newsom. […]

Expected legislation incorporating the Governor’s wish list for a catastrophic wildfire recovery fund to bail out private utilities facing big liabilities is to get its first airing July 5. The Senate Energy, Utilities & Communications Committee approves bills shifting the cost of supply shortages to energy providers that fall short  and increasing the efficiency of […]

California and Canada agreed to work together to develop vehicle tailpipe emission standards that are more stringent than the ones the Golden State has in place, which are being challenged by the Trump Administration. The memorandum of understanding signed last week also includes commitments by the two major economies to advance the adoption of electric […]

The California Public Utilities Commission announces it’s considering slapping penalties on PG&E for sparking huge wildfires in the fall of 2017. Earlier, state regulators unanimously approve a utility financial stress test with much consternation. They warn that the legislative mandate unfairly requires ratepayers to bail out utilities even if unacceptable behavior led to their wildfire liability. […]

The California energy agencies, utilities and cities are working to help the state meet its mandate of slashing greenhouse gases. But the state will be able to drastically cut climate pollutants only if the transportation sector is decarbonized. It produces more than double the emissions generated by the energy sector. To encourage the uptake of […]

In 1990, the California Air Resources Board adopted what became known as California’s zero emissions vehicle mandate under a federal Clean Air Act waiver. CARB’s mandate required that by 1998, two percent of the passenger cars sold by automakers be battery electric vehicles, with the level rising to 10 percent by 2003. The aim of […]

If President Donald Trump follows through on his threat to yank California’s authority to enact automotive emissions and fuel efficiency standards that are tighter than federal requirements, the work of the Golden State and utilities here to promote electric vehicles and develop charging infrastructure will be jeopardized. Not only will California’s climate change goals be […]

Legislators and policy makers displayed wide differences regarding the future of automotive standards aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions June 20 during a joint hearing of the House Energy & Commerce Consumer Protection & Commerce and Environment & Climate Change Subcommittees. The panels delved into the Trump Administration’s plan to freeze Obama era standards modeled […]

A House Energy panel zeros in on federal legislation and tactics to resolve the troubling issue of long-term storage of radioactive waste from nuclear power plants. Lawmakers also grapple with how to consolidate onsite spent fuel in 121 communities, including in Southern California and Sacramento. The day before, another House Energy & Commerce subcommittee tells […]

The California Energy Commission on a series of 3-0 votes approved nearly $60 million in grants for alternative energy projects, including battery, bioenergy, food production energy efficiency and photovoltaic installations on farms. Almost another $10 million in clean energy project agreements also got the green light. The grants approved during the CEC’s June 12 meeting […]

News flash: Joe Biden just released a $1.7 trillion climate change plan as part of his Presidential campaign platform. While on the late side compared to others, including candidates who spent last weekend at the California Democratic Convention in San Francisco, Biden’s plan may well be just as sweeping in its ambition. First and foremost, […]

California energy utilities, community choice aggregators, and power generators must actively support state officials who are fighting a move by the Trump Administration to freeze automotive emissions control standards aimed at cutting greenhouse gases and smog-forming pollutants. At stake are years of planning efforts and billions of dollars of investments to ready the grid for […]