Posted on 02/05/2017 8:09:52 PM PST by Olog-hai
The bucolic orchards of Sutter County north of Sacramento had never seen anything like it: a visiting governor and a media swarm — all to christen the first major natural gas power plant in California in more than a decade.
At its 2001 launch, the Sutter Energy Center was hailed as the nation’s cleanest power plant. It generated electricity while using less water and natural gas than older designs.
A year ago, however, the $300-million plant closed indefinitely, just 15 years into an expected 30- to 40-year lifespan. The power it produces is no longer needed — in large part because state regulators approved the construction of a plant just 40 miles away in Colusa that opened in 2010.
Two other large and efficient power plants in California also are facing closure decades ahead of schedule. Like Sutter, there is little need for their electricity. …
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Paywall
Moonbeam and his ilk subsidize solar panels, yet still throw money away with this crap. Moonbeam and every RAT who voted for these boondoggles should be charged with theft and corruption. Wake up California, you are being lied to, stolen from and spit at—all the while the unions and state employees are laughing at you while on the way to the bank.
Californians are also paying billions to support illegal aliens too, and it seems many of them don’t mind either. The Golden State is the Titanic and it’s already hit the iceberg.
Actually they very likely could need them, although if they do it will also be the case that fuel will be hard for them to obtain.
Because electricity demand is declining, because, in large part, industrial demand dried up, even food processing, because so much industry has moved away.
And I believe the median population standard of living has declined, as in air conditioning peak demand.
“There’s no excuse for this state to be in debt.”
Yes there is. It’s run by crooked damned Democrats.
What’s quite frustrating is the utilities such as Edison blame the customer for using too much electricity forcing them to bill in four tiers of level of usage. They then send out harassing letters to the consumers that if we don’t cut our electrical usage to that of which satisfies them they will penalize us in the next billing at an even higher fifth tier of billing.
Decembers Christmas lighting, along with freezing temperatures here in the Inland Empire cost us just under $500.00. Our home is totally electric.
California has laws in which we are fined should we use our fireplace on certain days they deem too smoggy. (Look fine to us, but they claim them too smoggy, so no using the fireplace to keep warm.)
This State sucks thanks to Democrats, and we are too heavily invested here to move at this time.
Wow. Good article. I had no idea we had any plants that were only running at 50% of capacity or less. We keep having brown outs and blackouts whenever summer rolls around and are told the grid is overloaded.
The article doesn’t mention why these independent plants are not running at full capacity and selling power out onto the grid to utilities in Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, and Nevada and beyond. I thought that was why we had a grid, after all. It sounds like they are not allowed to because the PUC dictates the rates and won’t let them sell to outside utilities to defray their fixed costs.
This article by the LA Times (LAT) is propaganda meant to shut down more conventional gas and nuke plants so that solar power replace them. So the LAT has manufactured an “investigative journalism” story line that the excess power capacity in California over the typical 10% in reserves is due to conventional power not green power. Moreover, many of the plants they mention that the LAT’s contends should be shuttered are those along the coastline that have been prohibited from using ocean water to cool their steam turbines and have been mandated to shift to pricey air cooling systems (sort of like converting your car radiator from water or liquid coolant to a pure air cooled system). Many of these power plants can not afford to convert to air cooling and are scheduled for mothballing anyway. The LAT is just a mouthpiece for unions and green interests.
In this case it seems like the PUC is corrupt. They are approving new plants because the Utility companies are guaranteed a 10.5% profit via rates charged to customers. Sounds like some of that profit is ending up in the PUC commissioners’ pockets somehow.
That occurred to me as well. If we ever got a rational tax and business climate back in the state, industry moving back could quickly absorb the excess capacity.
Of course, Moonbeam would rather see expansion of electric car fleets create additional demand.
That’s the “reason” but it is no “excuse”.
I wonder what the lefty Cronyists are feeling right now.
Conservatives have felt persecution, oppression, attack for eight years - there’s actually a gut feeling of despair and hopelessness that many of us suffered the whole time. What does the Left feel now that their Jig is Up?
Does it feel like a constant low-grade heart attack, an anxiety paralysis, drowning, all three, or what?
I’m just wondering when California is going to pay its bill to BCHydro for the power it “borrowed” during the energy shortfall of several years ago. I know that MY bill has gone up considerably since they failed to pay. Why am I, in another COUNTRY, having to pay California’s bill?
At California electricity prices, no time soon.
Robart declared somewhere along the line that his guiding light is to help the underprivileged fro the bench.
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