New York Times Features Marin and SF Green Power Fight With PG&E

Katherine Mieszkowsky has written an illuminating article in the Sunday Times on Marin's climate protection efforts - and the efforts of utility giant PG&E to block them. "Through a form of public collective purchasing (Marin) plans to provide a greener alternative to the power from the Pacific Gas & Electric Company, Northern California’s dominant utility....Unless, that is, P.G. & E., which is investor-owned, stops it. At the moment, it is making every effort to that end, jawboning participants, hinting at legal action and, most importantly, backing a voter referendum to nip such plans anywhere in the state....Marin, closely followed by San Francisco, is racing to get its program established because a statewide initiative, backed by P.G. & E. and likely to be on the ballot next June could make it much harder to do so."

Click Here to Read the New York Times article.

Local Power Proposes 76% Renewable to Marin at PG&E Rates

We finally did it. The Marin Energy Authority said Marin County residents and businesses want at least 51% green power in the community-wide power mix, but at the same rates the incumbent (fossil gas, nuclear, large hydro 12% renewable PG&E) charges. Local Power put together a consortium that can roll out a 76% Renewable power to all Marin customers at Pacific Gas & Electric Corp.'s rates. Sound revolutionary to you? What can we say? It's a buyers' market. For what will eventually become a game-changing event -  Check out Local Power Works LLC press release here. 

California Funds Local Power Inc. Regional Energy Resiliency Projects

The California Energy Commission approved Local Power Inc.'s funding to implement Renewable Energy Secure Communities in Sonoma County and San Luis Obispo Counties over the next three years. Escaping the state budget crisis butcher block, the Sonoma County project, a partnership of Local Power, Los Alamos National Laboratories, and the Sonoma County Water Agency (read SCWA doc), leading the North American Climate Initiative, will produce an complex carbon and economic model for the development of a portfolio of major renewable energy infrastructure proposed in LPI's 2008 Climate Action Plan for Sonoma communities, which was completed by the Sonoma Community Climate Action Plan (link to plan) in 2008 following countywide reduction of the nation's leading greenhouse gas reduction commitment (see the blog entry below). The San Luis Obispo contract, announced by the International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives (read announcement here) will research local renewable energy resources and market opportunities, spanning 18 months, to establish an informed approach to renewable energy development in the region by San Luis Obispo county.  Local Power was retained by Sonoma County to collect and analyze meter data from Pacific Gas & Electric to analyze energy use in the region and refine its 2008 portfolio model, which would achieve a 66% Renewable Portfolio Standard by 2015 without requiring any increase in rates (link to LPI docs is on our company web site).