GovReport

On climate, energy, infrastructure, and technology

Jesus Arredondo

CAISO, CPUC, CEC Issue Preliminary Report on Blackouts

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The Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee will be holding an oversight hearing with the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), and California Energy Commission (CEC) aimed at reviewing a report on the rolling blackouts triggered in August.

The Preliminary Root Cause Analysis  121 page report issued by the three energy agencies today offered the following three key findings:

  1. The climate change-induced extreme heat storm across the western United States resulted in the demand for electricity exceeding the existing electricity resource planning targets. The existing resource planning processes are not
    designed to fully address an extreme heat storm like the one experienced in mid-August.
  2. In transitioning to a reliable, clean, and affordable resource mix, resource planning targets have not kept pace to lead to sufficient resources that can be relied upon to meet demand in the early evening hours. This makes balancing
    demand and supply more challenging. These challenges were amplified by the extreme heat storm.
  3. Some practices in the day-ahead energy market exacerbated the supply challenges under highly stressed conditions.

The hearing is scheduled for October 12, 2020, at 10 a.m. in the Assembly Chamber.   The Committee agenda can be found here: Agenda Details

As we reported following the outages of August 14 and 15, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom directed the energy agencies to look at what went wrong, including within their organizations.  In their initial joint assessment, the three entities promised a “deeper dive” full review — this report is the “deep dive.”

In addition, CAISO said they will host a stakeholder call on October 13, 2020, to discuss the report.

Govreport will provide coverage of this hearing.

CAISO Declares Flex Alert for Thursday, Oct. 1

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The California Independent System Operator (CAISO) has issued a statewide Flex Alert, a call for voluntary electricity conservation, from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. tomorrow (Thursday, October 1, 2020).

With high temperatures in the forecast, the power grid operator is predicting an increase in electricity demand, primarily from air conditioning use.  Reduced capacity, along with fire activity and heat, has led to a potential shortage of energy supply tomorrow evening.

Earlier this afternoon, a Grid Alert was issued for a possible electricity shortage in the day-ahead market, for one hour beginning at 6 p.m. tomorrow, and a Restricted Maintenance Operations (RMO) notice was issued for the period 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. tomorrow to power plant operators.

The Grid Alert allows operators to call up demand response supply, while the RMO allows operators to call all available generation onto the system and bring back transmission that may be offline for planned maintenance.

Consumers are urged to conserve electricity, especially during the late afternoon and early evening, when the grid is most stressed due to higher demand and solar energy production falling.

According to the CAISO, tomorrow’s peak demand is expected to be 43,401 megawatts.  Since that is not a high peak, we assume the CAISO is anticipating the impact of lack of available supply from out of State resources.

Govreport will be tracking supply and provide posts as we see anything interesting developing.

PG&E Declares PSPS Event Beginning Early Sunday Morning

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Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) announced late Saturday that they are declaring a Public Power Safety Shutt-off (PSPS) event beginning early Sunday morning and that they will last until Monday.

Delivering the news during a press briefing, the utility said they expected the PSPS to impact nearly 89,000 customers in 16 counties across Northern California.

In a statement released after the press conference, PG&E said that “The anticipated scope and timing of this event has changed from earlier announcements, based on updated weather forecasts that showed stronger wind gusts in a larger portion of PG&E’s service area.  PG&E’s in-house meteorologists, as well as its Wildfire Safety Operation Center and Emergency Operations Center, continue to monitor conditions closely and additional notifications will be made today to customers who may be impacted by this event.”

According to the press release, portions of the following counties could be impacted by the PSPS: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Kern, Lake, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Tehama and Yuba.

PG&E estimated that power will be shut off to the impacted areas starting 2 am Sunday morning and they are expecting full restoration of power by 10 pm Monday evening.  The estimated weather all-clear will be around 8 am Monday.

The statement added that “Given the expected weather conditions, PG&E began its one-day advance notifications to customers in areas where PG&E may need to proactively turn power off for safety to reduce the risk of wildfire from energized power lines.” 

PG&E’s PSPS authority was granted by the Legislature, Governor, and California pUblic Utilities Commission and intended to reduce the threat of wildfire that could be sparked by lines brought down in gusting winds.

PG&E PSPS Information Site

PG&E Says PSPS Possible for 100K this Weekend Due to Heat and Wind

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Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) has warned late today that a Public Power Safety Shut-Off (PSPS) event is possible for close to 100,000 residents in Northern California this weekend as strong offshore winds are forecast to hit the region starting Sunday morning.

According to the PG&E press release, costumers in Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Kern, Lake, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Tehama, and Yuba counties could lose power over the weekend.

Following legislative and regulatory approval, California utilities were afforded the ability to enact PSPS events if high-risk weather conditions occurred.   While the utilities have been under fire for these events, the Legislature and Governor approved the use of the PSPS following the devastating 2018 fire season.

PG&E said that cutting power is necessary in high-risk weather conditions and that more than 80 damaged or hazardous power lines were discovered after the last round of shut-offs earlier this month.  In the press release, the utility said those damaged lines could have sparked a wildfire had they not been powered down.

As required by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), PG&E has made a number of changes in its power shut-off protocols this year, including providing outdoor community resources in impacted counties that will provide resources like cooling locations, restrooms, Wi-Fi, charging for technology, food, and water.

Beginning on Sunday, the PSPS if called, could extend through Monday.  A 12-hour notice will be issued by the utility if the PSPS is indeed called.

PG&E PSPS Information Site

Newsom Orders Ban on Gas-Fueled Vehicles by 2035

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Gov. Gavin Newsom has called for a ban on the sale of new gasoline-fueled vehicles beginning in 2035.  On Sept. 23, Newsom directed the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to establish regulations requiring that all new cars and passenger trucks sold in California in 2035 be zero-emission vehicles.

Gov. Newsom held a press conference in Sacramento on September 23 to announce the executive order. Image: YouTube.com

Newsom is also asking the Legislature to implement a fracking ban by 2024.  This direction comes in response to ongoing criticism from environmentalists that California isn’t doing enough to stop the use and production of fossil fuels in the State.

During his press conference, Newsom said:  “This is the most impactful step our state can take to fight climate change.”

Update at 120pm

From Governor Newsom’s Press Release:

“Following the order, CARB will develop regulations to mandate that 100 percent of in-state sales of new passenger cars and trucks are zero-emission by 2035 – a target which would achieve more than a 35 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and an 80 percent improvement in oxides of nitrogen emissions from cars statewide.  In addition, CARB will develop regulations to mandate that all operations of medium- and heavy-duty vehicles shall be 100 percent zero emission by 2045 where feasible, with the mandate going into effect by 2035 for drayage trucks.  To ensure needed infrastructure to support zero-emission vehicles, the order requires state agencies, in partnership with the private sector, to accelerate deployment of affordable fueling and charging options. It also requires support of new and used zero-emission vehicle markets to provide broad accessibility to zero-emission vehicles for all Californians.  The executive order will not prevent Californians from owning gasoline-powered cars or selling them on the used car market.

By the time the new rule goes into effect, zero-emission vehicles will almost certainly be cheaper and better than the traditional fossil fuel powered cars. The upfront cost of electric vehicles are projected to reach parity with conventional vehicles in just a matter of years, and the cost of owning the car – both in maintenance and how much it costs to power the car mile for mile – is far less than a fossil fuel burning vehicle.

The executive order sets clear deliverables for new health and safety regulations that protect workers and communities from the impacts of oil extraction. It supports companies who transition their upstream and downstream oil production operations to cleaner alternatives. It also directs the state to make sure taxpayers are not stuck with the bill to safely close and remediate former oil fields. To protect the health and safety of our communities and workers, the Governor is also asking the Legislature to end the issuance of new hydraulic fracturing permits by 2024.

The executive order directs state agencies to develop strategies for an integrated, statewide rail and transit network, and incorporate safe and accessible infrastructure into projects to support bicycle and pedestrian options, particularly in low-income and disadvantaged communities.”

Note:  The text of today’s executive order can be found here and a copy can be found here.

As California’s Fires Burn, Governor Newsom and President Trump Make Nice

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The largest wildfire in California history is currently burning in Northern California.  A series of lightning strikes ignited 37 fires that merged together.  The August Complex Fire exploded in size earlier this week after winds blew flames beyond previously-established control lines, according to the U.S. Forest Service.  

The August Complex Fire has consumed more than 877,000 acres (presently nearly twice the size of the second largest fire in State history); 16,500 firefighters are working to suppress these fires; sadly, 20 lives lost to date and 4,716 structures damaged or destroyed. 

On Monday, President Donald Trump was in Sacramento for a few hours to get a briefing on the California fires.  While he was here, there was a clear distinction of views on what might be done to make things better in the future — but it seems that Governor Newsom and President Trump might agree that better forest management is paramount.  Much work lies ahead for making this a reality, however.

In the meantime, the National Weather Service has advised that a very dangerous weather system is approaching Washington, Oregon, and California through Monday evening through Tuesday.  While wind will move smoke away for some time, the gusting winds will create warmer temperatures, lower humidity and will actually lead to oxygenating the current fires.  The Southwest wind has prompted a “Red Flag” fire warning through Tuesday (9/15). 

The largest fires currently burning according to CalFire data: 

  • August Complex Fire, over 877,000 acres burned, 28% contained as of 9/13 (Counties Impacted: Mendocino & Humbolt) – this is the largest Fire in California History – nearly 2 times the size of the 2nd largest fire in State history
  • SCU Lightning Complex Fire, over 396,000 acres burned, 98% contained as of 9/13 (Counties Impacted: Stanislaus, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Joaquin) Presently the 3rd largest fire in state history
  • LNU Lightning Complex Fire, over 363,000 acres burned, 96% contained as of 9/13 (Counties Impacted: Sonoma, Lake, Napa, Yolo & Solano) Presently the 4th largest fire in State history
  • North Complex Fire, 258,802 acres burned, and 26% contained as of 9/13 (Counties Impacted: Plumas & Butte)
  • Creek Fire, 201,908 acres burned, 8% contained as of 9/13 (Counties Impacted: Freson & Madera)

Since January 1, 2020, the following are the YTD totals on California fires:  7,718 fires have consumed more than 3.3 million acres (5,156.25 mi²).  As of today’s date, there are 32 major fires burning in California (27 in Northern California [North of Bakersfield] and 5 in Southern California).  

At Monday’s briefing that was streamed live, a conversation between the governor and president included this exchange:

Governor Newsom:  “We are experiencing an unprecedented confluence of issues. … When you add to the lightning strikes, the fact you have 150-plus million dead trees related to a five-plus year historic drought in the state of California — yes, I conclude climate change profoundly has impacted the reality that we’re currently experiencing.”

President Trump:  “We’ve been working very well with Gavin.  We’re obviously from different sides of the spectrum, but we have a very good relationship.”

Newsom has repeatedly praised Trump’s disaster aid for California, saying he wants to put political differences aside when problems need to be solved.  While he recently called their relationship effective in responding to emergencies — he has equally been critical of Trump for saying California wildfires were due to insufficient forest raking.

Saturday Mid-Day Update: Historic Fires Cover the West

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UPDATE9/12/2020 — 12noon

Wildfires are burning across the West, but cooler weather may be offering some hope in the coming days.  Also, just announced, President Trump will visit Sacramento on Monday (9/14) for a briefing on the California wildfires.

According the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), the combined firefighting force across the West is more than 29,000 currently on the front lines of these fires.  Across the West, thousands of homes and other structures have been lost and regrettably, 26 lives so far.  NIFC also reported that evacuations are active in 6 States across the West due to the massive fires.

In California, these are our current numbers as of 12 noon 9/12:

30 Major Active Fires (26 in Northern California and 4 in Southern California)

The August Complex Fire is now the Largest Fire in State History at nearly 847,000 Acres and only 25% Contained (by comparison, the second largest in state history, the Mendocino Complex Fire of 2018, was 460,000 Acres)

More than 3.3 Million Acres Burned (more than 5,150 square miles — )

7,718 Fires Year to Date

20 Fatalities Confirmed Fatalities

6,334 Structures Structures Damaged or Destroyed

Healthy Air Indexes across the West have recorded record breaking hazardous conditions in many cities across California, Oregon and Washington State.

UPDATE 9/10/2020 — 6 p.m.

California is not the only State in the West dealing with power outages and fires.  The National Guard and the US Department of Forestry are assisting California and 9 other States with similar problems.  Healthy air indexes are at historic highs in many of the West’s cities — large and small — because there is that much ash floating around.

These are the latest statistics from CalFire as of 6pm (9/10):

3,102,184 Acres Burned (4,847.1625 square miles)

7,694 Fires Year to Date

12 Fatalities Confirmed Fatalities

5,875 Structures Structures Damaged or Destroyed

Are there any good news to report?  PG&E said earlier today that they had restored 97% of the PSPS outages — roughly 4,500 customers remained without power as of 5pm — but PG&E is hoping to restore service to those customers sometime tonight.

On the fire lines, nearly 14,000 brave firefighters are hard at work.  The entire West is cheering for them and praying for their safety.

UPDATE 9/9/2020 — 730 p.m.

More bad news this afternoon as California’s record-setting fire season has gotten worse.  According to CalFire, more than two dozen fires forced thousands of residents from their homes as a massive new fire quickly burned more than 250,000 acres near Oroville.

All of this is occurring as PG&E was in the process of restoring power from the PSPS event that blacked out nearly 200,000 utility customers.

During his noon press conference, Governor Gavin Newsom said there were more than 14,000 firefighters are currently deployed trying to contain the wildfires in California.  Most of the State is under a red flag warning and strong winds in the  are fueling the flames.

CalFire reported that more than 2.2 million acres have now burned — that’s 3,437.5 square miles.  By comparison, that is roughly the total square miles of Delaware and Rhode Island combined.

As of this update, PG&E says they have restored power to 60,000 of the nearly 200,000 customers that were part of the PSPS event.  PG&E is hoping to restore power to the remaining customers as conditions permit.

Given the new fires, it is likely more PSPS’ will be called.

UPDATE 9/8/2020 — 6 p.m.

As we have been reporting, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) confirmed that customers in the Sierra Foothills, Northern Sierra and elevated North Bay terrain who were notified of an impending Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) are now without power.

From the PG&E Press Release:

“The PSPS event is affecting approximately 172,000 customers in 22 counties: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mariposa, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sonoma, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne and Yuba. The process to turn off power to these counties was completed between approximately 9 p.m. Monday evening and 6 a.m. Tuesday morning. Power will be shut off in Kern County at approximately 2 p.m. Tuesday.”

As described during their press conference, once the weather subsides and it is safe to do so, PG&E crews will begin patrolling power lines, repairing damaged equipment and restoring customers. In the area impacted by the PSPS, PG&E will need to conduct safety inspections of approximately 10,625 miles of transmission and distribution lines.

Restoration activities can only take place during daylight hours, so it’s likely that some customers may not be restored until 9:00 p.m. Wednesday evening.

From the SDG&E Press Release:

“Due to elevated fire weather conditions and forecasted Santa Ana winds, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has notified backcountry residents that it may have to turn off power to reduce wildfire risk in the coming days. Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) are approved by state regulators as an important safety tool of last resort to mitigate fire risk during dangerous weather conditions.”  

The National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning from 12 p.m. today through 8 p.m. Wednesday for inland Orange County and San Diego County valleys and mountains. Moderate strength Santa Ana winds are expected to arrive today, peak Wednesday in strength, and become weak to moderate through Thursday.

Yesterday, SDG&E sent PSPS notifications to approximately 16,700 customers at risk of Public Safety Power Shutoffs via phone, text messages and email. Customers who were notified should be prepared to be without power through Thursday, depending on SDG&E’s need and ability to physically inspect equipment during daylight hours prior to re-energizing.

Southern California Edison (SCE) has not issued any statements yet, but if the Santa Ana winds kick up, it might just be a matter for time before SCE begins planning for a PSPS.

UPDATE 9/7/2020 — 645 p.m.

The heatwave and the wind events have driven PG&E to make the hard decision to declare Public Power Safety Shutoffs (PSPS).

The following is wat is public on PG&E’s site:

“We are monitoring the weather. The current forecast indicates power may be turned off for safety in the next 1-2 days. For translated support in over 200 additional languages, please contact PG&E at 1-833-208-4168.”

The de-energization will begin later this evening (Monday 9/7) and continue through out tomorrow (Tuesday 9/8).  In a press conference that was held this evening, PG&E said they are anticipating re-energizing beginning on Wednesday morning (9/10).

Lat yesterday (9/6), PG&E said they anticipated the PSPS, if called could impact the following counties:  El Dorado, Placer, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Lake, Napa, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Yuba, Sonoma, Tehama, Tuolumne, Kern and Humboldt.

PG&E posted an interactive map that outlines who is impacted and when the outages are expected to begin.

PG&E is reacting to the National Weather Service warning that “critical fire weather conditions” will impact the PG&E service  territory through Wednesday, with winds gusting to 50 mph in the mountains and 35 mph at lower elevations.

GovReport will continue to update the situation.

UPDATE 9/7/2020 — 8 a.m.

The Golden State’s grid narrowly avoided rolling blackouts for a second time this year after consecutive days of hovering on the brink of power outages for hours.

The California Independent System Operator (CAISO), which runs the grid, said it was lifted a Stage 2 — the last step before rolling blackouts are imposed.  On Sunday (9/6), CAISO said blackouts could have hit up to 3 million households in one of the largest blackouts in California history.

Unfortunately, the crisis at this time is far from over.  The heatwave is expected to continue beyond Monday.  In addition, forecasts of gusting winds has prompted PG&E Corp. (PG&E) to warn it could shut off power in parts of its service territory Monday evening to reduce the risk of sparking a wildfire.

In addition to these problems, Governor Newsom’s Office announced that the new and fast moving Creek Fire in the San Joaquin Valley forced the closure of a 915-megawatt hydro power station.  CAISO added that other wildfires also knocked about 700 megawatts worth of solar generation, due to the smoke cover and ash.

PG&E PSPS?

According to a PG&E press release, a potential Power Safety Power Shut-off (PSPS) is possible for Monday (9/7) evening to parts of the following counties:  El Dorado, Placer, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Lake, Napa, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Yuba, Sonoma, Tehama, Tuolumne, Kern and Humboldt.

The National Weather Service warned of “critical fire weather conditions” through Wednesday, with winds gusting to 50 mph in the mountains and 35 mph at lower elevations.

If activated, the PSPS event would be the first imposed by PG&E for wildfire safety since last October.

UPDATE 9/4/2020 — 8 a.m.

In addition to the Flex Alert issued by the California Independent System Operator, Governor Gavin Newsom has also declared a State of Emergency for this weekend, specifically identifying the expected heatwave across the state and threat of potential blackouts.

9/3/2020 — 6 p.m.

The California Independent System Operator (CAISO) has issued a statewide Flex Alert, a call for voluntary electricity conservation, beginning Saturday (9/5/2020) and extending through Monday (9/7/2020), from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.

According the CAISO, Labor Day weekend temperatures are forecast 10-20 degrees above normal for California, and the power grid operator is predicting an increase in electricity demand, primarily from air conditioning use.  Overnight temperatures statewide are projected to be at least 10 degrees higher than normal, which doesn’t allow infrastructure to cool
down.

High heat is also predicted throughout the West for the weekend, which can limit the CAISO’s ability to import energy to serve demand, as the rest of the West is likely to experience the same increase in temperatures.

The anticipated events of this coming weekend are similar to what was experienced during the heat wave of August 14-18.

This next event is the second test of the grid in less than a month.  GovReport will be monitoring conditions and will update our readers as more information becomes available.

State Water Resources Control Board Unanimously Approves Extension of OTC Facilities

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Members of the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) voted unanimously extended the deadlines for once through-cooled (OTC) compliance for four natural gas power plants in an effort to maintain grid reliability in the Los Angeles area, a vote that took on extra importance after two nights of rotating blackouts last month.

After a seven-hour meeting, SWRCB postponed enforcement of an environmental rule for the Alamitos, Huntington Beach and Ormond Beach gas plants from the end of this year to the end of 2023.  A fourth plant in Redondo Beach, fully deployed during the blackouts, was granted a one-year extension to the end of 2021 despite strong objections from the City’s mayor and councilmembers over continued air pollution.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), who recommended the extensions, said it would send quarterly updates to the board on the development progress of 3,330 megawatts of clean energy slated to replace the gas plants by 2023.  But they warned that COVID-19 has slowed supply chains and construction operations, which could result in energy authorities approaching the board again for another extension while they wait for the clean capacity to come online.

The CPUC also acknowledged the concerns of environmentalists regarding plant owner payments tied to water use, saying that it would look at whether the 10-year-old mitigation fees structure should be updated.

SWRCB member, Laurel Firestone “I do think it’s important for us to have our deadlines mean something.  That’s especially true when there’s a decade of runway time to achieve them.  I think it’s really frustrating for all of us to have to extend compliance dates at a really late hour.”

Reacting to the possibility of revamping the fees, SWRCB staff cautioned that to do so would require the Board to completely re-open the OTC regulation, which could create a long delay and take months to explore.  In the end, it seems that the Board might be reluctant to do that.

Prior to the meeting, the SWRCB has made public a letter that was submitted to the record by the CAISO, CPUC and CEC: https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/ocean/cwa316/docs/otc_letter.pdf

The letter expresses that while the agencies were not seeking additional extensions, given COVID-19 and other unforeseen circumstances:

“The CPUC, CEC, and CAISO staff will continue to monitor peak demand to determine if forecasts need to be adjusted. Even with the limited number of projects with risk of delay and some uncertainty about future demand, the vast majority of the new reliability resource projects ordered by the CPUC are currently meeting their milestones. However, if the CPUC’s tracking of project development starts to indicate a significant risk of delay of project online dates or other factors show that California’s electric reliability maybe at risk, the staff of the CPUC, CEC, and CAISO may return to the Water Board by early 2021 to request an additional extension of OTC permits for units that may retire at the end of 2021.”

The CPUC is next scheduled to approve purchase power agreements (PPAs) for the output of those plants under the approved extensions at an upcoming voting meeting in mid September.

More Public Power Safety Shutoffs are Coming in 2020

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As reported over the last several days on GovReport, a statewide heatwave, fires in Northern and Southern California, and high winds are forcing California’s in state utilities to declare or consider public power safety shutoffs (PSPS), an ability that was granted to the utilities via legislation that was signed by Governor Newsom and regulations that were later approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).

As of Monday (9/8), Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), is currently in the midst of a PSPS event for 17 Northern California counties — an event that could impact as many as 200,000 customers.  Late this afternoon, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) warned of a possible PSPS event in the rural parts of its service territory, as a result of high winds and very dry conditions.

The events are cumbersome for the customers, as the power outages could last from a few minutes to a few days or longer.  The protocols enacted for the shutoffs are just as process driven as the re-energizing process is after the shutoffs.  The entirety of the event is part of a highly regulated process.

Notwithstanding, there are rumblings from the Capitol that the process and duration of some of these events is “unacceptable” and “too disruptive.”

The PSPS was afforded as a tool to the utilities.  The fire season is just getting going, and already has broken records in acreage burned and likely to break records on emissions created.  More PSPS events are likely to happen between today and the end of the year.  The worst fire in State history did not happen in the summer or even in September.  It happened in late October.

Last week the National Guard said that California is on track to exceed its worst fire season on record and there’s little relief in sight.  About 1,300 National Guard members from five states including California are currently assisting CalFire fight the fires, which have already consumed more than 1.6 million acres, or an area roughly the size of Delaware, according to Army General Daniel Hokanson.  By comparison, nearly 2 million acres burned in 2018, California’s deadliest fire year on record, when the Camp Fire consumed much of the city of Paradise in Butte County.

The largest fires currently burning as of this report: 

  • SCU Lightning Complex Fire, over 396,000 acres burned, 95% contained as of 9/7 (Counties Impacted: Stanislaus, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Joaquin) Presently the 2nd largest fire in state history
  • LNU Lightning Complex Fire, over 375,000 acres burned, 90% contained as of 9/7 (Counties Impacted: Sonoma, Lake, Napa, Yolo & Solano) Presently the 3rd largest fire in State history
  • Creek Fire, 143,900 acres burned, 0% contained as of 9/8 (Counties Impacted: Fresno)

Since January 1, 2020,  7,335 fires have consumed nearly 1.7 million acres (2,656.25 mi²).  As of today’s date, there are 29 major fires burning in California (21 in Northern California [North of Bakersfield] and 8 in Southern California).

The PSPS disruptions are not just annoying the Legislature and the regulators, they are hurting business, and customers.  With no power, there’s no technology — and no distance learning.

Image: https://prepareforpowerdown.com/

 

Energy and Wildfire Report – 6PM Update

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8/19/2020 – Record Heat, Threat of Power Outages and Lightning Caused Wildfires – The past 72 hours have been among the toughest Governor Newsom has faced since taking office.  As record heat gripped the West, power consumption soared and the penetration of renewable intermittent power highlighted the vulnerabilities of the California grid.  According to the CAISO, monsoonal cover resulted in a loss of solar and wind generation, resulting in the State counting on natural gas generation and conservation efforts to help keep the lights on.

While coming very close to outages over the last 24 hours, California has managed to keep its lights on, only to yield to over 10,000 lightning strikes and over 360 fires as a result.   As of this posting, CalFire is reporting 34 major fires burning across the State, 26 in Northern California and 8 in Southern California.

The grid will be tested again the remainder of the week – but now by wildfires potentially impacting transmission lines.  The good news:  CAISO says no power outages tonight.  The bad news:   CalFire and local fire agencies have ordered evacuations in several counties, as large wildfires burn tonight with virtually no containments (Current Major Fires with no containment:  SCU Lightning Fire – Multiple locations throughout Santa Clara County, Alameda County, Contra Costa County, San Joaquin County, and Stanislaus County – over 85,000 acres.  LNU Lightning Complex Fire, Napa and Solano Counties, over 46,000 acres.)

 

Assembly exempts solar farms from ‘split roll’ tax initiative

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The Assembly has approved SB 364 (Mitchell) to exempt solar farms from Proposition 15, the “split-roll” initiative on the November ballot.

SB 364 is effectively an agreement between split-roll supporters and solar advocates that would ensure Proposition 15 won’t adversely impact the tax treatment of California solar farms if voters approve the initiative. The Assembly approved the bill on a 56-8 vote.

The “solar fix,” which would preserve the solar industry’s property tax exemption for existing solar farms, was initially contained within AB 105 as a budget trailer bill. But the Legislature failed to consider the proposal before they left for summer recess last month.

SB 364 was amended with the solar language on July 27, clearing the Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee the same day and moving to the Assembly floor.

The one key difference between AB 105 and SB 364 was that the Assembly bill unintentionally extended the tax exemption to the purchaser of an existing solar farm. That’s not what existing law allows, however. SB 364 closed that loophole to ensure that when a solar farm is sold, the new owner is taxed based on the change in property value.

The bill would still protect solar farms built through 2024. Industry advocates say they need the bill because their financial calculations have relied on preserving the tax break on their projects.

Because SB 364 was amended in the Assembly, it must pass the Senate for concurrence before reaching the Governor’s desk for action. If approved, Newsom is expected to sign the bill.

PPIC Survey says Californians favor renewable sources, are not as likely to want to pay more for electricity

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The Public Policy Institute of California’s released an environmental survey (PPIC Eviro Survey) that shows that Californians strongly support policies on environmental protection, but not everyone is willing to pay more for their energy services.  When asked if they would be willing to make major lifestyle changes to address global warming, respondents overwhelmingly agreed. But in the same poll, when asked if they would be willing to pay more for electricity generated by renewable energy to reduce global warming only 47% were willing to pay more for electricity.

Also muddying the situation is that a robust 77% agreed with the state’s plan to have 100% of electricity from renewable sources by 2045. But less than half are willing to pay for higher electricity costs.

Key Highlights:

  • 39% expect that the state doing things to reduce global warming would lead to more jobs.
  • 50% expect that state action would lead to higher gasoline prices.
  • 47% are willing and 52% are not willing to pay more for electricity from renewable sources.

A disconnect seems to exist between “wanting to do more for the environment,” and understanding that to “do more,” means “greater costs.”

Another curious problem seems evident and that is that there seems to be very little understanding about what the CARB cap and trade program is all about.

Despite seemingly extensive media coverage since the program’s inception, 54% of the poll respondents said they knew nothing about the cap and trade program. When it was explained to them as a way to limit GHG’s, those polled supported the idea by almost two-to-one. When asked an additional follow-up if it were important to spend revenues gained from cap and trade to improve environmental conditions in low-income communities, support was strong with 78% answering it was either very important or somewhat important.

Open-ended questions in polls are necessary to drive responses, but in this case, it seems that too many people have no idea that there is a cause and effect coming from the efforts to reduce emissions to zero.  Higher energy costs. We wonder what a poll will look like when that reality is here.

Utilities Pledge to Green Up

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Southern California Edison (SCE) and the Sacramento Municipal Utilities District (SMUD) this week made big pledges to go “green up” their footprints. SCE pledged to electrify its fleet and SMUD pledged 100% green power.

SCE pledged that its car fleet will be all-electric by the end of the decade. They 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. SCE said that they have 6,200 small and large vehicles.

SCE stated that the electrification of its fleet will reduce the company’s annual GHG emissions by nearly 6,000 metric tons: the equivalent of taking 7,600 cars off the road for a year. SCE added that they wanted to set an example for their workforce and that they would be installing 180 EV chargers at 36 facilities for employee use, with 150 new ports going in this year.

SCE also installed 1,800 electric vehicle chargers at 100 other locations across its territory, from workplaces to public parking areas. SCE plans to install up to 50,000 more public EV ports over the next few years, investing $1 billion. SCE also said they have begun construction on a planned 870 chargers for electric buses, delivery trucks and tractor trailers.

The SMUD board voted unanimously to embrace a carbon-neutral power target of 100% in the next 10 years. Previously the utility had aimed for 2040. Under State law, California utilities much reach that mandate by 2045.

SMUD’s advancement of its clean energy goal was approved as part of its climate emergency declaration. SMUD said that they will issue a roadmap for this net zero energy target by March 31 of next year.

To accomplish this goal, SMUD must slash emissions from its five natural gas power plants. The 5,706 GW hours produced by these plants create nearly 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide each year, according to SMUD staff. Converting the gas plants to a renewable fuel source is “on the table.”

SMUD’s Integrated Resource Plan, which set a 100% net-zero electric carbon goal for 2040 and was approved by the California Energy Commission in January says the following:
This resource plan – now sped up for 2030 – proposes to spend $7 billion on 2,850 MW of large-scale renewables and 1,000 MW of small alternative energy resources. That includes 1,200 MW of utility-scale solar plants, 670 MW of wind, 560 MW of utility-scale storage, and 180 MW of geothermal. It also includes 600 MW of rooftop solar, 200 MW of demand response, and 200 MW of customer battery storage, along with 900,000 electric vehicles and 400,000 fully electric homes.

SMUD serves 1.5 million customers in Sacramento County and parts of Placer County.

CPUC Mandates Back-Up Power for Cell Towers by 2021

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The California Public Utilities Commission unanimously approved to mandate that wireless providers have backup power for communications facilities in fire-prone areas by next July after residents lost crucial phone service during past disasters and PSPS shut-offs. It was among several resiliency mandates the PUC approved.

In May, the Commission issued new rules on how forced blackouts should be conducted, including a directive for utilities to work with local governments and critical infrastructure operators to provide backup power for services like water, transportation and telecommunications. Many cell towers went down during last fall’s PSPS events, prompting criticism from the Legislature.

According to the Commission, last year, nearly nine of every 10 calls to 911 were delivered over wireless networks, whether cellular or internet. There are 45 million wireless subscribers in the State, according to Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma, while there are just under 14 million wired customers.

The Commission’s decision sets resiliency requirements for wireless providers that have facilities in Tier 2 and Tier 3 high fire threat districts. The Commissioners also said they would consider similar requirements for lower-risk Tier 1 zones in a forthcoming decision.

The Commission order directs wireless providers to develop resiliency strategies to prepare for disasters and outages, along with requiring them to file communications resiliency plans detailing their ability to maintain a minimum level of service and coverage. Providers must install 72-hour backup power at their facilities, and the agency gave them until mid-July 2021 to do this.

The Commission has faced criticism from environmentalists for allowing wireless providers to use diesel generation for backup power. The Commission also authorized diesel for microgrids last month, but Commissioner Cliff Rechtschaffen said the decision’s requirement for wireless providers is to annually reduce their fossil fuel usage and rely more on clean energy.

Can Microgrids Rescue PSPS?

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At a joint CEC and CPUC workshop last week, the agencies agreed that deploying microgrids as fast as possible could prevent blackouts during wildfires and power shutoffs. The challenge will be making them financeable and make them environmentally friendly.

“We have got to get cleaner and quieter backup,” CPUC President Marybel Batjer said at the workshop.

The CPUC recently approved PG&E installing more than 300 MW of diesel backup in high-risk fire zones across its territory to keep the lights on during PSPS events. The microgrids allow power to be shutoff where power lines are most likely to spark more wildfires, without taking down hundreds of thousands of customers. At the time of the decision, the CPUC agreed that reliability was critical, and diesel backup while not optimal, won out over air quality and health issues.

The CPUC recently also approved a rulemaking requiring the IOUs to ease the way for third-party microgrids, including simplifying interconnection agreements that now take many months. But many of the third-party microgrids are diesel-fueled.

CEC Chair David Hochschild added that solar and other renewable microgrids can help keep the lights on and be part of a clean energy future. He suggested using discarded electric vehicle batteries in microgrids, noting that EV owners usually replace the battery when the capacity falls by about 25%.

CEC staffer Mike Gravely urged the agencies to hasten the transition to non-polluting microgrids, by allowing the value of clean air to somehow be counted/valued. Others added that other benefits of microgrids also are being left out of cost considerations, but ultimately making microgrids more affordable also necessitates getting rid of departing load charges imposed by the private utilities.

The CEC and CPUC will likely hold more discussions on microgrids as part of the 2020 Integrated Energy Policy Report Update.

Final Push with New Bill for Pumped Storage

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With COVID-19 stalling most energy matters not related to PG&E, the NextEra backed effort to promote pumped storage in California got new life last week following the “gut and amend” of AB 1720  by Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo (D-Los Angeles). The new bill would direct the California Department of Water Resources (CDWR) to buy pumped storage electricity from the NextEra proposed project.

As proposed, AB 1720 would fast-track the pumped-storage project through the CEQA process, specifically invoking that venture in an effort to start construction. Additionally, if the CPUC does not by March 2021 say whether it’ll order the in-State utilities to buy an unspecified amount of storage capacity, the bill would have CDWR procure those resources.

The legislation is supported by the State Building and Construction Trade Council of California, the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership and the Long Duration Energy Storage Association of California.

The NextEra project has not yet secured state and federal approvals.

AB 1720 contains language from the previous legislation that stalled earlier this year that also promoted pumped storage, SB 597 (Hueso) and AB 2255 (Eggman). AB 1720 is currently on the Senate floor, but the bill will likely be referred to a policy committee for further review.

 July 31 is the last day for policy committees to report fiscal bills to appropriations committees, and this bill is in that category because of the electricity purchases that would be made by CDWR.

California COVID-19 Update – June 29

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The following statistics were gathered from various government websites:
  • State-wide—215,375 confirmed cases, 5,933 deaths (+35 from yesterday-State-wide).        
  • The greater Los Angeles area has 97,894 cases and 3,305 deaths (+20 from yesterday).
  • The Bay Area has 23,738 cases and 568 deaths (+5 from yesterday).  
  • Confirmed cases in 55/58 counties (3 counties have reported no cases).
  • Counties re-opening 51 of 58 (those counties are moving to Phase 3 of 4 as defined by Newsom Administration). Cities, including in the greater Los Angeles Area and several in the San Francisco Bay Area, moving slowly toward Stage 3. Because of a sure in cases, there are recommendations to re-instate “stay at home” in some counties.

Budget Update: Legislature Restores CalGEM Enforcement Positions

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[et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]In last week’s final budget, the Legislature restored key cuts for the Department of Conservation’s Geologic Energy Management (CalGEM) division, which regulates the drilling, operation, and permanent closure of energy resource wells.  CalGEM will now receive 25 positions costing $7.2 million in the following categories:

  • 10 positions to assess companies’ financial liability for idled and orphaned wells, an implementation of SB 551 (Jackson);
  • Four positions to strengthen companies’ financial assurance requirements for those wells, an implementation of AB 1057 (Limón);
  • Two positions to improve companies’ transparency surrounding natural gas leaks, an implementation of SB 463 (Stern);
  • Five positions tied to regulatory compliance and oversight;
  • Two positions tied to public outreach and data transparency;
  • Two positions tied to enforcement.
  • The cost of those 25 positions is $7.2 million in the 2020-21 budget year, the source said, followed by $4.5 million in 2021-22 and ongoing.

In January Newsom proposed to send, an extra 128 positions and $24.3 million to implement AB 1057 and other reforms over a three-year period.

But in a reversal last month, Newsom entirely withdrew the proposal — even though that boost wouldn’t have impacted the general fund as the state tries to dig itself out of a $54 billion deficit. The plan would have instead drawn from the Oil, Gas and Geothermal Administrative Fund that’s sourced from industry fees.

Despite Newsom’s reversal, the Legislature proposed going forward with his original plan, which would have provided 53 extra positions costing $13.9 million in the 2020-21 fiscal year.  In final negotiations, 25 positions were restored at a cost of  $7.2 million in the 2020-21 budget year, followed by $4.5 million in 2021-22 and ongoing, according to budget documents.

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SCE Says Nearly 50% of Electricity Delivered to Customers is Carbon Neutral

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Announcing the release of its 2019 Sustainability Report on June 8, Edison International stated that 48% of the electricity delivered to 15 million customers last year by Southern California Edison (SCE), its largest subsidiary, came from carbon-free sources.

With the announcement, SCE, which is also California’s second-largest utility, is effectively signaling their aggressive effort to comply with the State’s climate goals.

Currently, California law directs utilities to secure 60% of their electricity from the Renewables Portfolios Standard (RPS) loading order-eligible resources by 2030, followed by a 2045 requirement for 100% of electricity to come from zero-carbon sources. The State is weighing whether RPS-ineligible sources, including nuclear power and large hydroelectric power, should qualify for the 40% gap between the two milestones.

The 2019 Sustainability Report states that, of the 48% of the utility’s carbon-free, delivered power:

  • 34% derived from the RPS-eligible sources of solar, geothermal, small hydro (less than 30 megawatts), biomass and biowaste; and,
  • 14% derived from the RPS-ineligible sources of nuclear and large hydro (30-plus MW).

The remaining 52% of delivered power last year was reported to still be coming from natural gas and other sources (assume fossil).

Two years ago, SCE’s power mix was at 36% renewables, while that of PG&E was at 39% and SDG&E was at 44%. All three investor-owned utilities are years ahead of the RPS schedule, with the California Public Utilities Commission scheduled to publish the official 2019 figures this fall.

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