How California Can Build More Microgrids

We can move faster installing microgrids, but you need to make some changes. 

That’s the overarching message from microgrid companies to California regulators as the state faces utility power shutoffs for years to come.

The recommendations are pouring into the California Public Utilities Commission as it attempts to translate into regulation a law (SB 1339) that calls for the state to facilitate the commercialization of microgrids (19-09-009).

When the law was passed last year, its backers saw microgrids as good risk planning. Now the risk is real with massive power shutoffs in recent weeks by utilities attempting to avert wildfires. The state’s largest utility, Pacific Gas & Electric, has warned that such outages could be the norm for a decade. 

Millions of Californians have lost power, inducing anger, chaos and economic loss. For those who rely on medical devices that run on electricity, the outages mean danger. 

“As planned power shutdowns interrupt daily life and business for hundreds of thousands of ratepayers — and pocketbooks, health, and even life for the most vulnerable — it is imperative that California...Continue reading on Microgrid Knowledge.