If you're not in Northern California you may not know the legalized extortion that PG&E operates under the guise of a "public utility"
I got an email and in it, they state, with a straight face, that all of their legal costs, millions paid to executives, etc are not paid for by rate payers but by investors and results in reduced profit, not increased costs.
This is the same PG&E that raised rates approx $2bln and had a $2bln profit.
#DiabloCanyon #NuclearPowerPlant brings #profits for PG&E, deadly risk for residents [and the #environment]
Tina Landis
August 19, 2024
"Despite opposition from residents and #environmental organizations, California legislators passed #SenateBill846 in 2022 to extend the life of the dangerous, aging Diablo Canyon #nuclear facility.
"Located on the Central Coast surrounded by several #fault lines, one has to question why a nuclear facility was placed in an #earthquake zone to begin with, much less allowing it to continue to operate well past its retirement date. The world witnessed what can happen to a coastal nuclear facility in an earthquake zone when the 2011 #Fukushima disaster triggered a meltdown that displaced nearly half a million residents, with vast amounts of #RadioactiveWater still being released into the ocean today.
"As long as Diablo Canyon remains open, Californians live with the constant risk of suffering the same type of disaster.
"From its inception, Diablo Canyon had little public support. Protests occurred regularly during its construction, and thousands were arrested for #CivilDisobedience actions in 1981.
"In the 1970s and 1980s, California’s three largest utilities spent billions of dollars building dangerous and costly nuclear plants like Diablo Canyon, which resulted in skyrocketing rates for customers. Big industry fought back against these increased energy costs, which resulted in deregulation bills consisting of multi-billion dollar #bailouts to the state’s utility companies to cover their costly investments in nuclear.
"Today, the last remaining nuclear plant operating in the state is still draining billions in funds that could be used for safe, #renewable energy development. To keep Diablo Canyon running 5 years past its retirement date is expected to cost $8 billion to $12 billion. A federal aid package of $1.1 billion will contribute to some of those costs – meaning federal #taxpayers’ money – while the remaining billions will be passed on to #California #ratepayers.
"Despite being run by PG&E and only generating power for its territory, customers of #SouthernCaliforniaEdison and #SanDiegoGasAndElectric will help cover the remaining costs of the Diablo extension. Edison bills will increase by around $1.25 a month and SDG&E by 87 cents a month, while PG&E customers are expected to chip in $2.07 a month – and that’s just for the first year. Critics warn that costs are likely to increase in coming years to keep the plant running, and that’s on top of already skyrocketing PG&E rates that have doubled over the last decade. And if PG&E collects more funds than are needed for Diablo’s operations, they get to keep it!
"In 2022, when legislators pushed this through #SB846, the excuse of energy shortages was used due to pandemic-related supply chain issues and massive #wildfires. But today, there is plenty of energy being produced with increased #solar and #battery storage capacity that has kept the lights on even during this summer’s unprecedented heat waves driving up demand. The California Public Utility Commission’s own reporting shows that an additional 18,500 megawatts of new resources were added to the grid between 2020 and 2024, which is enough to power around 14 million homes. Another 11,000 megawatts will be added by 2028.
"Nuclear has the third highest lifecycle emissions of all energy sources after scrubbed #coal fired plants and natural gas – meaning it is far from being zero-emission. It also creates the unresolved issue of the #RadioactiveWaste which remains dangerous for tens of thousands to millions of years.
"Keeping the Diablo facility running will only hold back further development of safe and truly low-carbon, low cost renewable sources like solar and #wind energy.
"So why isn’t Diablo Canyon being decommissioned? The short answer is that #capitalism must ensure continued profits for the #InvestorClass.
"SB 846 authorized Diablo’s extension through 2030, and gave PG&E a $1.4 billion loan for the for-profit utility to facilitate the plant’s extension. #GovernorNewsom facilitated another transfer of taxpayer dollars to PG&E through an additional $400 million loan from the state’s general fund, included in the recent budget deal. Critics warn that these 'loans' will never be repaid, meaning residents will be fully subsidizing the Diablo extension – from federal and state tax dollars to our utility fees.
"But there is a way out. SB 846 allows the #CPUC to retire the plant earlier than 2030 if sufficient levels of new renewable zero-carbon energy resources exist, are interconnected, and meet demand, which is the case.
"CPUC has a long track record of serving PG&E’s interests, so intervention by the commission is unlikely. One example of many that demonstrates their close relationship: CPUC is not requiring PG&E to show how much of our utility bill actually goes to the Diablo extension, but instead lumps the cost in with 'public purpose programs,' making it impossible to determine.
"While communities are demanding an early shutdown of Diablo, PG&E is currently applying for a 20-year license renewal from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission [#NRC] for the facility, which is expected to be approved. This would mean customers will foot the bill to keep this dangerous nuclear facility running through 2045, far beyond the original expiration dates of 2024 and 2025.
"CPUC has proven their unwavering support time and again for PG&E’s monopoly control over the state’s energy system at the expense of residents’ safety and affordable rates. The Diablo Canyon nuclear plant is just another mechanism to squeeze ratepayers and line the pockets of shareholders who live far away from the dangers posed by this aging facility. Only a public takeover of this #corrupt utility can win clean, safe and affordable energy for all."
#PGAndE #RethinkNotRestart #NuclearCorruption #NuclearBailouts #RenewablesNow #NoNukes
#DiabloCanyonNuclearPlant
#NuclearPowerCorruptionAndLies #California #WaterIsLife #OceansAreLife
Yikes, wildfire related costs now make up a whopping 24% of PG&E's revenue requirements in California?!
https://energyinnovation.org/publication/clean-energy-isnt-driving-power-price-spikes/
#PGAndE #WildFire #ClimateChange #EnergyTransition #Electricity
#PowerPole #maintenance #powerout #entropy #blackout
Hey Marin @TheAntiM
So #PGandE is replacing a pole in my back yard today. The pole is 208 ft. behind the house.
They're assembling the crane now. Preparing to put the counterweights on now.
I went grocery shopping and when I got home there was (and is) an unplanned power outage. #pgande told us that the power will be restored by 7 pm. But #comcast think the network will be back up by 5.45. Do they have an inside track or are they clueless? I’d be very surprised if it isn’t back up by four. Five at the latest. 🤞
Local TV news (KTVU) described the recent power outage as the third-largest in PG&E's history.
Here's an article from years ago. It mentions deregulation, but I think this is also an example of "regulatory capture".
"PG&E Outage: A look back at utility company's history of blackouts"
By Ken Miguel KGO
October 25, 2019
"PG&E has had its share of massive blackouts since the state deregulated utilities in 1996. Some have been planned, others have not..."
https://abc7news.com/pge-pacific-gas-and-electric--pge-power-outage/5606454/
#deregulation #RegulatoryCapture #PGE #PGandE #PacificGasAndElectric
Reject PG&E Rate Hikes: Let's Dig Deep, Think Deeply, and Invest in an Energy Revolution
#PGE #PGERateHike #CampFire #ParadiseFire #wildfires #PGandE #California #utilitybills #news #Politics #CAPolitics
/cc #ScottWiener #CalEnergy
#PGE If I am charging my #EV #PHEV regularly at non-peak, why do you constantly shame me about how much kWhr I Use?
If avg user, doesn't charge their EV at home
- why should I receive neg messaging when I charge at home more than avg?
#PGandE #PacificGasAndElectric
#PHEV #EV #UX #AntiPatterns
#Green #GreenUX
This is so enormously frustrating to me. I led the recent Kidical Mass through Virginia & San Pablo, which has a non-energized HAWK right now. It was terrifying. It's still not energized despite the fact it was installed nearly a year ago and someone was very severely injured at that intersection in late November. It's just completely unacceptable. https://twitter.com/prinzrob/status/1641477864158826496
Well, bedtime with an infant and a toddler with no power is going to be an adventure. #Oakland #parenting #PGAndE
California’s last remaining nuclear power plant will definitely remain open at least a couple more years, and the state wants it running until 2023, but PG&E wants it running another 20 years.
#NuclearPower #California #DiabloCanyon #PGANDE
https://sfist.com/2023/03/03/diablo-canyon-nuclear-plant-gets-reprieve-to-stay-open-past-2025-could-be-running-another-20-years/
PG&E rolling a $300+ gas only bill last month. I heat my house to 67 so my fingers don’t freeze. Passing on the cost but never the savings. #PGandE #PacificGasAndElectric #naturalGas
Communication Breakdown. (One of the other bands in the practice space tonight was a very loud Del Nileppez cover band, Lenny Gonzalez and I are fine.)
This whole story makes me so sad and enraged. #Berkeley, #CalTrans, and #PGandE should all be held to account for their inaction, and make systemic changes to learn from it. (Thanks to @berkeleyscanner for digging into this more.) https://www.berkeleyscanner.com/2022/12/22/traffic-safety/berkeley-cyclist-crash-san-pablo-virginia-update/
Happy to report that PG&E has unexpectedly delivered a fix before self-imposed deadline. Power is back on. #FirstWorldProblemSolved #PGandE
