Dive Summary:

• California might not use the bulk of its solar energy, but the state’s new solar generation is in full force. 97% of new generation capacity lined up for the second half of 2013 is solar.
• There are 1,633 megawatts (MW) of new generation capacity in the second-half queue. Of that total, 1,581MW is solar and 52MW are biomass.
• A lot of the solar won't be used. Come summer, California will have added 3,391MW of installed capacity – of which 2,296 will be natural gas, 565MW will be wind and 530MW will be solar.

From the article:
“This is likely a very good indication of the new generation the marketplace will build to replace the 2,200-megawatt deficit caused by the San Onofre nuclear facility outage and the mandated closures/retrofits of fossil fuel plants that over-consume the state’s water resources. And it is a strong indication of the kind of building that will be driven by the state’s 33 percent by 2020 Renewable Portfolio Standard.”