The California Independent System Operator, or CAISO, has an ambitiousBecome a CalMatters member today to stay informed, bolster our nonpartisan news and expand knowledge across California.All three include installing a high-voltage, direct current, subsea cable that would start near the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant in San Luis Obispo County and land near the El Segundo and Scattergood power plants near LAX where a converter station would be built.
Building these projects may not be easy, but it can be done. Fifteen years ago, San Francisco faced a similar challenge as they sought to eliminate two gas plants in low-income neighborhoods of the city. The solution was to build a high-voltage direct current cable under the San Francisco Bay from Pittsburgh in the east to an industrial area near the Giants baseball stadium.
, greatly improved electric system reliability for San Francisco by allowing two-way power flows into the city’s distribution system.If a subsea transmission line can be built in the Bay Area, the same can be done in Southern California. Right now the region only has one major north-south power pathway from the Central Valley to Southern California.
Building a new high-voltage direct current power line from the north to Los Angeles will reduce the risk of power disruptions while expanding access to clean energy fromalong the Central Coast as well as new solar projects being developed in the lower Central Valley. And long term, it will substantially reduce the need for dangerous gas infrastructure.
The CPUC can jumpstart this effort by voting against the Aliso Canyon gas storage proposal. CAISO and the Los Angeles Department of Power and Water can follow by including the proposedIf California focuses on building out clean transmission instead of powering up dirty gas infrastructure, we can deliver cleaner air and much-needed renewable energy to Southern California while reducing the risk of fossil fuel disasters.