The California Independent System Operator released its flexible-capacity needs assessment for 2021, saying that its needs are affected by actual net load and three-hour ramps that are about four years ahead of the ISO's original estimates due to increasing rooftop solar. Read More
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The California Independent System Operator updated its schedule for development of its enhanced and extended day-ahead market initiatives, saying "new work conditions necessitate additional time for policy development and for stakeholders to provide feedback." Read More
Pacific Gas & Electric on March 31 finalized the sale of its Narrows Hydroelectric Project to the Yuba County Water Agency. The 12-MW facility on the Yuba River in Nevada County is licensed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission through 2026 [P-1404]. The $507,500 sale also includes… Read More
The bankruptcy proceeding of Pacific Gas & Electric is a chance for the state to make some amends for past wrongs inflicted on California electricity consumers, but so far, things don't seem particularly aimed that way. Read More
Demand and market uncertainty continued weighing on Western energy prices as the temporary unavailability of Aliso Canyon storage threw one more spanner in the works for regional natural gas markets. Read More
The California Public Utilities Commission will apply a set of emergency protection actions to utility customers in California for at least one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the commission decided at its voting meeting on April 16. Read More
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The COVID-19 pandemic has quickly rifled through California's energy industry, erasing nearly 20,000 clean-energy jobs in the state in March and creating uncertainty over unpaid electric bills, project contracting, financing, construction and permitting. Read More
The full effects of COVID-19 response on energy demand and infrastructure cannot be readily assessed yet, as the economic fallout from the pandemic is still occurring across the country. Read More
Business—though not as usual—continues however possible as people carry on against the backdrop of a pandemic, and the utility industry is no exception. Regulators and policymakers across the western U.S. have resorted to virtual meetings in the era of social distancing and have scarcely—if … Read More
Global sales of electric vehicles are forecast to drop 43 percent by the end of the year due to economic fallout from the novel coronavirus, according to an April 8 analysis from energy research company Wood Mackenzie. Read More
"Unprecedented" was the word most often heard during an April 8 discussion on utility crisis management hosted by Clarion Energy, an energy industry events group. Executives representing five major utilities across the country, including NV Energy, PNM Resources and Sacramento Municipal Util… Read More
Crude-oil and natural gas prices continue sliding despite OPEC and its allies agreeing to slash production by 10 million barrels per day to curb an estimated 20-million-bpd global oversupply expected in the second quarter of 2020. Read More
Wildfire victims, who in less than one month are due to cast their final votes on Pacific Gas & Electric's proposed reorganization plan, this week learned that PG&E cannot use the victim trust fund to pay its $4-million settlement for 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter related to … Read More
Hundreds of California's wildfire victims on April 14 attended a virtual meeting to learn more about Pacific Gas & Electric's proposed bankruptcy reorganization plan that outlines how they will be compensated for their losses. Read More
The party behind a legal complaint against state agencies over the creation of a $21-billion wildfire fund is making the argument that the California Public Utilities Commission should have held evidentiary hearings on the matter. Read More
An influx of wastewater from the treatment plant at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station led to a 7,000-gallon release of partially treated sewage from the shuttered San Diego County plant into the ocean March 25. Read More
Vistra Energy will be expanding the size of its Oakland Power Plant energy storage project through a contract with East Bay Community Energy, the company said April 15. Read More
Six hotels in California will be installing solar-plus-storage solutions following the closure of a financing agreement April 7. Read More
Energy demand appears to be suffering from the effects of COVID-19 as people continue to work, learn and try to play from home under state-mandated orders intended to slow the spread of the virus. Read More
Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, a Colorado-based wholesale power provider with 43 electric distribution cooperative members across four states, on April 9 approved a new partial-requirements contract option that could allow greater flexibility for its members to self-suppl… Read More
The Arizona Corporation Commission at an April 14 meeting held via videoconference approved a certificate of environmental compatibility allowing Tucson Electric Power to proceed with the development of a 138-kV transmission line project previously approved by the Arizona Power Plant and Tra… Read More
Two environmental and consumer advocacy groups, on April 10 filed an appeal with the New Mexico Supreme Court over the application of the state's Energy Transition Act in a final order issued April 1 by the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission. The landmark bill, SB 489, sets a target of … Read More
Former Vice President Joe Biden's emergence as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee has set up a fall contest with President Donald Trump in which U.S. voters will have a clear choice between two sharply different energy and climate policy platforms. Read More