California Utilities Face RPS Deadlines
8/16/2010

Summary:

Stoel Rives attorney Seth Hilton discussed in Sustainable Industries the renewable energy standard (RPS) requirements confronting California investor-owned utilities. Under a 2002 state law, California investor-owned utilities must generate 20 percent of retail power sales from renewable energy sources by the end of 2010. In 2009, an executive order upped that RPS to 33 percent by 2020.

Hilton noted that while utilities are well on their way to achieving their goals, long term success in meeting the state's 2020 goal depends on other factors, including power transmission and project siting. "You want to push utilities to do as much as possible but not set goals that aren't achievable," he said. "You don't want to put the goal so far out of reach that failure could be viewed as an indictment of the entire program."

"California Utilities Face RPS Deadlines" was published by Sustainable Industries, August 4, 2010.