Northern and Central California Community Choice Aggregators Issue Joint Request for Proposals for New Clean Energy Sources
January 7, 2022
Local electricity providers seek eligible renewable, carbon free and long duration energy storage resources to meet state procurement mandate
Santa Rosa, Calif. – Three Community Choice Aggregators (CCAs), Central Coast Community Energy, Silicon Valley Clean Energy and Sonoma Clean Power, have partnered to jointly issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) for new clean energy resources. The RFP solicits proposals from qualified and experienced individuals or firms to develop non-polluting energy sources to meet the state’s new Mid-Term Reliability procurement mandate in addition to each respective CCA’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), greenhouse gas emission reductions and reliability requirements. The RFP may be found on the Sonoma Clean Power website at sonomacleanpower.org/request-for-proposals. Proposals are due by 5 p.m. PT on January 31, 2022.
“With the rapid growth of CCAs in California, the work of fulfilling the state’s climate goals is largely falling on public power providers like Sonoma Clean Power,” said Geof Syphers, CEO of Sonoma Clean Power. “This joint solicitation will help us maintain reliability while the state phases out reliance on nuclear and natural gas power.”
The CCAs are seeking to procure resources to satisfy the requirements of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) order D.21-06-035. The historic procurement mandate was made to respond to more extreme weather events and replace power from the Diablo Canyon nuclear facility, which will be decommissioned in 2025. As a result, the CPUC ordered all load serving entities in the state, including CCAs, to purchase 11,500 megawatts of new, clean resources to come online by 2026. The decision requires the three CCAs to procure a combined total of more than 600 MW of additional Net Qualifying Capacity (NQC) to come online before June 1, 2026. NQC refers to the ability of a power plant to meet the reliability needs of the grid, particularly during peak, evening hours.
Eligible resources for this RFP include – non-fossil fuel sources such as solar, wind, renewable plus storage hybrids, and demand response; zero-emitting resources available during peak evening hours, such as energy storage; firm-generation resources that are not weather dependent, such as geothermal; and long duration energy storage that is able to discharge over at least an eight-hour period.
The CCAs are locally governed public agencies, formed under Joint Power Authorities, to assist their regions with providing clean energy and lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Together, the three CCAs represent nearly 895,000 customer accounts and serve more than 11,000 gigawatt hours of load.
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About Central Coast Community Energy
Central Coast Community Energy (CCCE) is a public agency that sources competitively priced electricity from clean and renewable energy resources. CCCE is locally controlled and governed by board members who represent each community served by the agency. Revenue generated by CCCE stays local and helps keep electricity rates affordable for customers, while also funding innovative energy programs designed to lower greenhouse gas emissions and stimulate economic development. CCCE serves more than 400,000 customers throughout the Central Coast, including residential, commercial and agricultural customers in communities located within Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz counties. Learn more at 3CEnergy.org and on social media, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @3CEnergy
About Silicon Valley Clean Energy
Silicon Valley Clean Energy is a not-for-profit, community-owned agency providing clean electricity from renewable and carbon-free sources to more than 270,000 residential and commercial customers in 13 Santa Clara County jurisdictions. As a public agency, net revenues are returned to the community to keep rates competitive and promote clean energy programs. Silicon Valley Clean Energy is advancing innovative solutions to fight climate change by decarbonizing the grid, transportation, and buildings. Learn more at SVCleanEnergy.org.
About Sonoma Clean Power
Sonoma Clean Power is the public power provider for Sonoma and Mendocino counties, serving a population of about a half-million. In downtown Santa Rosa, SCP operates the only Advanced Energy Center in the United States dedicated to helping customers transition to 100% renewable energy for their homes, businesses, and cars. SCP is also the only power provider in California offering 100% renewable energy twenty-four hours per day, every day of the year. To learn more, visit sonomacleanpower.org or call 1 (855) 202-2139.
Media Contact
Kate Kelly, Director of Public Relations
Sonoma Clean Power
kkelly@sonomacleanpower.org | 707.486.2952