Dive Brief:

  • Pacific Gas & Electrical is no longer the default electricity provider to whatever communities in Sonoma County, Calif., subsequently three more than municipalities began taking service from a new clean energy agency this calendar week.
  • Sonoma Clean Power, a publicly-owned utility created by local governments in 2022, is now the default supplier to all but one community in the county north of San Francisco. Subsequently beginning service in 2022 to but 23,000 customers, the provider now serves almost a half one thousand thousand individuals, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
  • The only community in the county not procuring power through Sonoma Clean Power isHealdsburg, which runs its own municipal utility.

Dive Insight:

Sonoma Clean Ability has banked on being three things: Local, green, and cheaper than PG&East. So far, that strategy appears to be working.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports the county-run clean energy procurement bureau is now the default provider in all of Sonoma'due south communities, salve Healdsburg which runs its ain utility.

"It's difficult to fence with a skillful deal," Geof Syphers, CEO of Sonoma Clean Ability, told the newspaper. "Most people, when they hear the story almost cleaner and cheaper, they're pretty happy."

On June 1, Cloverdale, Petaluma and Rohnert Park all began receiving power from Sonomoa Clean Power. While customers tin opt to remain with PG&E, most practice non. Fewer than x% have reverted dorsum to the incumbent provider, the CEO said.

The power agency says information technology is about 5% cheaper than PG&Eastward and says information technology could provide even lower-cost ability if information technology wanted, but information technology maintains a college mix of renewable ability. Earlier this year SCP contracted with Pristine Sunday to build up to 12.5 MW of new solar power in Sonoma Canton, past floating solar panels on ponds. The project will be the largest floating solar projection in the United states, and the second largest in the globe, the agency believes.

So far, communities have non had to choose between greener power and lower prices. But Syphers told Utility Dive last year that in that location are consumers willing to pay more for cleaner free energy. About 65% of people say they would pay a little more for cleaner ability, though when asked separately roughly eighty% are concerned nearly rates.