The California Energy Commission approved well over $20 million in large grants to support electric vehicle chargers and worker training, update building codes, install electric stoves in underserved communities, create zero-emission affordable housing, and develop low carbon hydrogen.

Two contracts for $12 million in grants will be used to update the CEC energy codes.

To help do this, Norescso will receive $7.5 million to lead a team of architects and engineers to assist in updating the CEC’s Energy Code for non-residential, single-family residential and multifamily buildings.

Another $4.5 million was approved for Bruce Wilcox to be in charge of architects and engineers to provide technical support for existing and updated residential and non-residential compliance documents and performance modeling tools.

The CEC awarded more than $6 million for more expensive fast chargers to serve ride hailing services to enable the drivers to spend more time working and less time charging up. The grants include:

• $2 million to TeraWatt Infrastructure to install seven fast chargers and 12 dual-port Level 2 EV ports  in Santa Ana;
• $2 million to KIGT, Inc. to build an EV charging plaza in Ontario, which is to include a microgrid with 2 MW of photovoltaics and 500 kWh of battery storage;
• $1.7 million to EVgo Services for 30 direct current fast chargers installed at two sites in San Francisco and at the Oakland International Airport ; and
• $415,000 to the Latino Equity Advocacy & Policy Institute to install four direct current fast chargers, solar carports, and storage batteries in Huron near Fresno.

Also approved were almost $5 million in grants for EV training courses:

• San Diego Community College Districts will receive another $1.8 million for fleet technicians for zero-emission truck and infrastructure curriculum at six of its colleges;
• Another $3 million will be divided up among nine entities, including state universities, the County of LA, the Housing Authority of San Joaquin, West Oakland Job Resource Center, National Indian Justice Center, and a center for veterans.

The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory was awarded $4 million to investigate how replacing gas stoves with electric ones affects indoor air quality and the respiratory health of children with asthma in under-resourced communities in California.

The CEC also approved $3 million in grants to fund clean energy in affordable apartments:

• Self Help Enterprises will receive $1 million to design a zero net energy, all-electric, mixed-use, transit-oriented affordable housing community in Visalia;
• SoLa Impact Opportunity Zone Fund was awarded $1 million for a sustainable, zero-emissions affordable housing project with 50 homes in Compton, California; and
• Another nearly $1 million will go to the Association for Energy Affordability for a zero-carbon alternate design for an eight-story, 100% affordable housing project in San Jose.

In other news, CEC approved a diesel-powered backup system at the West Kern Water District pump station that sends 1.8 billion gallons of water every year for processing and cooling to the 1,048 MW natural gas-fueled La Paloma power plant in Kern County. The facility lost power or went offline 13 times between last June and October at times of intense heat and demand, causing a loss of between 50 MW to-more than 1,000 MW to the grid.