PG&E’s Diablo Canyon Gains Funding to Extend Life for California’s Last Nuclear Plant – Natural Gas Intelligence

The Division of Vitality (DOE) has conditionally awarded $1.1 billion in federal funding to Pacific Gasoline and Electrical Co. (PG&E) to assist extending operations at California’s final remaining nuclear energy plant.

PG&E’s 2.2 GW Diablo Canyon Energy Plant (DCPP) in San Luis Obispo County offers about 17% of California’s carbon-free electrical energy and eight.6% of the state’s whole electrical energy. The funds could be made accessible by means of the Civil Nuclear Credit score Program.

“That is one other very constructive step ahead to increase the working lifetime of Diablo Canyon Energy Plant to make sure electrical reliability for all Californians,” stated PG&E CEO Patti Poppe. “Whereas there are key federal and state approvals remaining earlier than us on this multi-year course of, we stay centered on persevering with to offer dependable, low-cost, carbon-free power to the folks of California, whereas safely working one of many high performing vegetation within the nation.”

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DOE Secretary Jennifer Granholm weighed in as properly.

“This can be a vital step towards making certain that our home nuclear fleet will proceed offering dependable and inexpensive energy to Individuals because the nation’s largest supply of unpolluted electrical energy,” Granholm stated. “Nuclear power will assist us meet President Biden’s local weather objectives, and with these historic investments in clear power, we are able to defend these services and the communities they serve.”

California’s Senate Invoice (SB) 846, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into legislation on Sept. 2, sought to increase DCPP’s operations for 5 years past its present license expiration in 2025. 

The concept was “to enhance statewide power system reliability and scale back greenhouse fuel emissions whereas extra renewable power and carbon-free sources come on-line,” DOE stated.

California final month additionally licensed a mortgage of as much as $1.4 billion from the Division of Water Assets to assist extending the lifetime of DCPP.

SB 846 directed PG&E to use for any accessible federal funds to pay again the mortgage. PG&E utilized for the DOE funds the identical day that Newsom signed SB 846.

The ultimate quantity of federal funds awarded to PG&E “will probably be decided following completion of every 12 months of the award interval, and quantities awarded will probably be primarily based on precise prices,” DOE stated. 

California’s SB 100 handed in 2018 requires a carbon-free electrical energy sector by 2045.

Newsom, in the meantime, issued an govt order in 2020 requiring all new car gross sales to be zero-emission by 2035. 

The state might want to roughly triple its present electrical energy grid capability to fulfill the 2045 goal whereas electrifying different sectors akin to transport to fulfill its economy-wide local weather objectives, in line with an inter-agency report launched final 12 months by the California Vitality Fee (CEC), the California Public Utilities Fee and the California Air Assets Board. 

Pure fuel accounted for 50.2% of California’s in-state energy era and 37.9% of the state’s whole electrical energy combine in 2021, in line with CEC.