Dive Brief:
- California Public Utilities Commission President Michael Picker has issued a proposed decision backing a new gas plant in Southern California, despite objections from environmentalists who say cleaner sources of energy should be pursued.
- Picker's proposal, however, would approve a smaller gas facility than the local utility had proposed and shift some of the other power requirements over to cleaner sources.
- According to San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), the new facility is needed to help integrate renewables into its grid.
Dive Insight:
CPUC President Michael Picker's proposal would approve SDG&E's bid to construct the new gas plant, but is subject to two conditions. The first reduces the project contract capacity from 600 MW to 500 MW. The second calls for all of the 100 MW of remaining capacity to be generated by "preferred sources" (renewables) or energy storage.
"On balance, the public interest in awaiting the results of SD&E’s [request for offers] is outweighed by the risk of a reliability gap," Picker wrote in the proposed decision.
The utility has estimated consumers would pay about $2.6 billion over 30 years under the initial 600 MW proposal. An administrative law judge had recommended against the new plant, arguing the power needs do not become urgent until 2022.
Critics of the proposed plant say SDG&E should have considered options other than fossil fuel generation, and want to see greater investment in energy storage and renewables.
