CA Current

The release of the much anticipated first analysis of the major causes of the mid-August blackouts highlights warnings previously raised. That includes agency resource forecasting and planning missing the mark on climate and a cleaner grid. Major stakeholders—from utilities to community energy—insist that clean reliable resources are needed now more than ever. The California Public […]

To better protect the climate, Gov. Gavin Newsom Oct. 7 ordered that 30% of state lands be preserved, including by carbon capture activities. State agencies are to take steps to store more carbon, including by curbing wildfire threats, restoring wetlands and planting trees, which will help the state achieve carbon neutrality by 2045. “The science […]

California regulators unanimously approved the largest utility electric car charging infrastructure program in the country. The California Public Utilities Commission voted 5-0 to allow Southern California Edison to charge its ratepayer $436 million over the next four years to install 38,000 light duty vehicle chargers. Commissioner Cliff Rechtschaffen recognized concerns about the program’s cost. He […]

Energy storage is surging in California, with much of it being built next to solar plants. The grid operator board approves giving these complimentary co-located projects a market boost so they can fill the gap in peak supplies over the next three years. After many years, dozens of stakeholders reached an agreement on removing PacifiCorp’s […]

Southern California Edison committed July 21 to making its car fleet all-electric by the end of the decade. It also pledged to convert nearly a third of its pickups and larger vehicles, 8% of heavy-duty trucks, and 60% of forklifts by the same year, 2030. The utility has 6,200 small and large vehicles. The electrification […]

July 8 update Neither the Assembly nor Senate will return to Sacramento next week as planned. The California Senate made the announcement in a July 8 letter, the day after the Assembly cancelled reconvening July 13 because five who work at the Capitol tested positive for Covid-19, including at least one lawmaker, the San Francisco […]

The California Energy Commission will approve nearly $43 million in grants for electricity storage technologies that use something other than lithium ion batteries by the end of this month. The Commission approved $11 million in grants for seven projects June 10. Another nearly $30 million is expected to be approved June 25 for alternatives to […]

Widespread adoption of electric cars and small trucks in California over the next decade could raise the gross state product between $82 billion and $140 billion by 2030. That is according to a Jan. 28 report by Berkeley Economic Advising and Research, commissioned by the nonpartisan think tank Next 10. Fueling significant numbers of small […]

By Wayne Hicks An oft-repeated refrain—the sun doesn’t always shine, and the wind doesn’t always blow—is sometimes seen as an impediment to renewable energy. But it’s also an impetus toward discovering the best ways to store that energy until it’s needed. Declining costs in available technologies have propelled interest in energy storage forward like never […]

This coming year will be full of action in half a dozen energy areas. There will be bigger wrestling matches between California and the Trump Administration over climate protection, between natural gas advocates and opponents, and between community choice aggregation and the private utilities. The three other key issues of 2020: energy storage, electrification of […]

Slashing emissions from ports, trucks and jets requires federal policy changes and financial assistance, lawmakers were told during an Oct. 23 House Environment & Climate Change Subcommittee hearing. The Wednesday hearing examined how these sources of greenhouse gases can be cleaned up to help the U.S. achieve a carbon lite economy by 2050. “Fast, efficient […]

The U.S. Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee Sept. 25 forwarded to the U.S. Senate legislation focused on energy storage, energy efficiency, and industrial emissions reductions. The measures “can serve as the bipartisan pillars of a robust energy package centered on innovation and efficiency,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AL), Committee chair. Among the measures advanced […]

Trump’s claim that California’s Clean Air Act waiver is preempted by federal law drives state air regulators to look at other ways to slash climate pollution from the transportation sector. Two Republican federal energy regulators approve a proposal to alter the 40-year old law protecting small renewable projects and co-generation. The dissenting Democratic commissioner says […]

The U.S Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration yanked California’s ability to set vehicle emission standards tighter than federal ones, as promised. The Sept. 18 revocation of the state’s waiver authority under the federal Clean Air Act also undermines California’s zero emissions vehicle program, further undermining its climate protection work. Mary […]

How to drive down industrial greenhouse gas emissions to reach a 100 percent clean energy economy by 2050 was the daunting task debated at a Sept. 18 House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing. “Transforming our economy to one that is 100 percent clean will be tough and will take significant resources and ingenuity, but it […]

The green premium has disappeared in Texas and the same will happen in California and elsewhere By Fereidoon Sioshansi Environmentally conscious consumers traditionally had to pay a premium to get clean kilowatt/hours. They’ve been typically offered as a “premium” product by the suppliers: the higher the renewable content, the greener the electrons and higher the […]

The California Public Utilities Commission votes to increase PG&E’s gas transmission and storage revenue this year to $1.3 billion, with even bigger raises the next couple of years. State energy regulators direct $100 million in unspent clean energy incentives to low-income ratepayers and critical services providers for energy storage installations in areas with high wildfire […]

Sen. Dianne Feinstein and others blasted President Donald Trump for weakening rules to control leaks of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. California’s senator called the proposed rollback, “incredibly irresponsible and wrong.”  Feinstein said she plans to challenge the move in the courts or with a Congressional resolution. As expected, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced […]

As energy agencies and stakeholders debate how best to slash and eventually eliminate carbon emissions from buildings a key concern is equity. Specifically at issue is protecting and ensuring that low-income, polluted communities reap gains from funded programs. “As we move away from combustion to reach important public environmental health goals, we have to make […]

Pressure is mounting for energy policy makers to meld building decarbonization and energy efficiency programs and funding to ensure California reaches a zero carbon energy sector by 2045. Part and parcel of that considerable challenge for the California Energy Commission and Public Utilities Commission is whether to substitute a single emissions reduction metric in place […]