Dive Brief:
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has prepared two proposals for regulators to choose from to address the state's challenge of maintaining a reliable power grid after the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant and a suite of natural gas facilities are retired in the coming years.
Both proposals would direct electricity providers, including utilities, to collectively procure 11,500 MW of resources that can come online between 2023 and 2026. But while one proposal allows utilities to include up to 1,500 MW of incremental capacity from fossil fuel resources in that package, the second would cap that at 500 MW.
The inclusion of fossil fuels in both proposed decisions is "disappointing, but not unexpected," according to Michael Colvin, director of regulatory and legislative affairs at the Environmental Defense Fund. "We are going to have to recognize that the longer we keep these legacy fossil units online, the harder it is going to be to fully decarbonize the California economy," he added.