Renewable Energy Goals

Releasing its annual report on the state’s Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS) program, the California Public Utilities Commission announced that the data indicate that the initiative is ahead of schedule and is helping to achieve large reductions in costs for renewable electricity.

The commission noted that under the RPS plan, California’s investor-owned utilities, electric service providers, and community choice aggregators are required to source at least 33% of retail sales per year from eligible renewable energy projects by 2020, rising to 50% by 2030. According to the report, as of 2017 the state’s large investor-owned utilities had already surpassed their interim targets and are on pace to exceed the 33% goal set for 2020.

The commission related that as of the time the report was compiled, the three largest electric utilities had shown RPS procurements in the following amounts: 1. Pacific Gas & Electric Company: 32.9%. 2. Southern California Edison Company: 28.2%. 3. San Diego Gas & Electric Company: 43.2%. The report documented that significant reductions in costs for renewable electricity have accompanied the utilities’ achievements. The report says that between 2008 and 2016, the price of utility solar contracts reported to the commission went down by 77%. The price for wind power likewise went down, by about 47% between 2007 and 2015, the commission said.