California’s Power Crisis
I maintain this topic as a separate section because politicians and policy analysts are prone to forget what happened in California around the turn of the current century. The power crisis then was a man-made catastrophe that is still playing out nearly a quarter centry later. For example, NRG, one of the utilities involved in the scandal, was force to install hundreds of electric vehicle charge stations across the sate as part of its long-overdue settlement with the state of California. Though NRG is no longer involved, that network of stations is now EVgo and an important EV charging network nationwide.
What happened then still haunts California politicians and its regulatory agencies.
The revolving door at public utilities commissions? It’s alive and well
By
External Source
Of the 473 commissioners for whom Heern could find information on what they did after they left utility regulation, 50% of them went to work for one of the industries they regulated, or in an industry-adjacent role such as consulting. “That revolving door is definitely alive and well,” Heern told me.
Since the long-term targets are in place – the big question remaining to be answered is how to accomplish these goals. Namely, how to manage the transition from a fossilnuclear system to a mainly renewable energy system at the lowest possible cost and with
By
Dale Kasler
More than a decade after the last rolling blackout, Californians could get $1.6 billion in electricity refunds because of market manipulation during the first few months of the energy crisis, officials said Monday. . .
California’s Power Crisis: An Environmentalist’s Vision
By
Paul Gipe
The current power crisis offers an unparalleled, if not unfortunate, opportunity to rethink how we produce, consume, and value …
California’s Power Crisis, A Personal View
By
Paul Gipe
2003 Note: This was written at the height of California’s Power Crisis. Some who read this piece criticized it for …
Comments on California’s Power Crisis
By
Paul Gipe
California’s power crisis occurred in 2000 and 2001. By 2002 the threat of rolling blackouts had effectively passed. However, the …
My Take on the Power Crisis or How the Anchovies Were Fed to the Sharks
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October, 2001 presentation to the League of Women Voters Energy Forum, Bakersfield, California It’s quite a privilege to be …
