Pacific Gas & Electric surpasses Californiaʻs renewable energy standard

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) delivered more than 35 percent renewable energy to customers in 2020, exceeding the goal of 33 percent established by the California Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS).

More than 88 percent of the electricity PG&E delivered to its customers last year came from greenhouse gas (GHG)-free resources, including eligible-renewable, nuclear and large hydroelectric energy.

“As we pass this major mile-marker of 33 percent RPS on the road to our clean energy future, it’s a great example of how we’re delivering on our Triple Bottom Line of serving people, the planet, and California’s prosperity. More renewable energy on the electric grid helps us ensure cleaner air and better health for our customers while also helping California secure a robust, clean-energy economy for all. We are proud to have one of the cleanest energy portfolios in the nation,” PG&E CEO Patti Poppe said.

PG&E’s renewable energy portfolio includes solar, wind, bioenergy, geothermal and small, eligible-renewable hydroelectric (30 megawatts or smaller) power. Solar accounts for about 45 percent of PG&E’s total renewable energy power mix.

The company has 239 RPS-eligible power purchase contracts, representing over 6,700 megawatts (MWs) of renewable energy. Of that total, about 4,100 MWs is solar energy. PG&E owns 13 solar power plants, mainly located in the Central Valley, and generates up to 152 MWs of clean power. Further, PG&E has connected more than 535,000 customers with private rooftop solar to the electricity grid. The rooftop solar in PG&E’s service area represents about 20 percent of all rooftop solar in the country.

In addition, PG&E is investing in battery energy storage. The company currently has contracts for battery energy storage projects totaling more than 1,400 MWs of capacity to be deployed throughout its service area through 2023. Also, PG&E has installed and connected 19,000 behind-the-meter (BTM) battery energy storage systems to the grid. Most of these are for residential customers—totaling more than 230 MWs of capacity.