Clean Power SF outlines local build‑out, enrolment and contracts as commissioners press municipalization questions

Michael Himes, director of Clean Power SF at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, told the Local Agency Formation Commission on Jan. 18 that Clean Power SF is advancing a local build‑out strategy while preparing for April citywide enrollment.

Himes said the program has executed short‑ and long‑term agreements to secure renewable supply and meet regulatory obligations. He cited purchases from the Sunset Reservoir solar project, wind energy from the Shiloh 1 wind farm and the Geysers geothermal deliveries under a five‑year Calpine contract that includes community‑benefit provisions. Himes said two long‑term contracts — a 100‑megawatt solar project in Lancaster and a 47‑megawatt wind repower in Mojave — are expected to begin deliveries in 2019–2020. Combined, those projects are projected to supply roughly 130,000 average San Francisco households and support about 600 construction and operations jobs in California.

Himes described Clean Power SF’s local‑investment approach as twofold: supply‑side acquisition of renewable generation (with a preference for projects in the nine‑county Bay Area) and demand‑side measures to reduce customer energy use within the city. He previewed a proposed…