logo

California's installed renewable energy numbers may surprise you

image
Author: Bob Morris
Created: 12 May, 2011
Updated: 13 October, 2022
3 min read

If asked what type of renewable energy is most prevalent in California, most would choose solar or wind, but in reality, those two forms of renewable energy aren't even close. Instead, the current California champion for renewable energy is geothermal, followed by small hydro. Say what? 

As an example, on Wednesday May 4, 2011, geothermal energy production in California was 23,980 MWh, followed by small hydro with 13,210, then wind at 10,166. Solar power was last, with 3,094, behind biomass and biogas.  Yes, that's right, solar power produces the least amount of renewable energy, even as it (and wind) get most of the attention.  Total renewables production for the day was 61,549 MWh against a total system demand of 670,435 MWh or about 9%. Clearly, California has a long way to go to meet its ambitious goal of 33% renewable energy by 2020.

These numbers are from California ISO, a non-profit that monitors and operates much of California's high-voltage wholesale power grid. They post full details of renewable energy production each day at Renewables Watch and real time system demand overall at Today's Outlook

Geothermal energy, for those who may not know, uses hot liquids from within the earth to power turbines. California has enormous amounts of undeveloped geothermal in addition to its substantial installed base. Geothermal is steady, produces power 24/7 and doesn't care if the sun is out or the wind is blowing. Small hydro is also quite steady, certainly much more than solar or wind. For reasons known only to their analysts, the powers-that-be in renewable energy in California have decreed that while small hydro is renewable energy, large hydro is not. This is nonsensical. Perhaps someone doesn't want Bechtel building more dams, as there appears to be no other reason for this decision. 

California is the leader among states for renewable energy, yet as Cal ISO shows, it gets a decidedly small amount of its power from renewables. Even worse, a considerable amount of California power is what Cal ISO delicately calls "imports," which is power imported from other states. This power is often not renewable at all and frequently comes from coal plants on Indian land in Arizona and Nevada.  Here's the dirty little truth. Coal plants are banned in California, so California imports coal power from hundreds of miles away, all the while putting up a fine show of being green and focused on renewable energy. The City of Los Angeles is notorious here, as it gets substantial power from such coal plants. 

A big coal plant can produce 1-3 GW (1 GW = 1,000 MW) while a nuclear plant can output 3-5 GW. There are no individual renewable energy plants that can come near these numbers. Hopefully one day there will be. For this to become a reality, the transmission grid will need to be remade to handle large amounts of variable power production coming from all directions. Also, renewable energy plants will need to be able to store power for later use. Then California might be able to reach that 33% renewables goals by 2020.

Latest articles

votes
Wyoming Purges Nearly 30% of Its Voters from Registration Rolls
It is not uncommon for a state to clean out its voter rolls every couple of years -- especially to r...
27 March, 2024
-
1 min read
ballot box
The Next Big Win in Better Election Reform Could Come Where Voters Least Expect
Idaho isn't a state that gets much attention when people talk about politics in the US. However, this could change in 2024 if Idahoans for Open Primaries and their allies are successful with their proposed initiative....
21 March, 2024
-
3 min read
Courts
Why Do We Accept Partisanship in Judicial Elections?
The AP headline reads, "Ohio primary: Open seat on state supreme court could flip partisan control." This immediately should raise a red flag for voters, and not because of who may benefit but over a question too often ignored....
19 March, 2024
-
9 min read
Nick Troiano
Virtual Discussion: The Primary Solution with Unite America's Nick Troiano
In the latest virtual discussion from Open Primaries, the group's president, John Opdycke, sat down ...
19 March, 2024
-
1 min read
Sinema
Sinema's Exit Could Be Bad News for Democrats -- Here's Why
To many, the 2024 presidential primary has been like the movie Titanic - overly long and ending in a disaster we all saw coming from the start. After months of campaigning and five televised primary debates, Americans are now faced with a rematch between two candidates polling shows a majority of them didn’t want....
19 March, 2024
-
7 min read