PUC endorses Clean Power SF outreach framework amid debates over pricing, equity and Shell contract

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on a joint LAFCO/PUC agenda endorsed a staff framework for the Clean Power SF customer notification and education program and set a timetable tied to an agreement with Shell Energy North America.

The endorsement followed a staff presentation from Barbara Hale, Assistant General Manager for Power at SFPUC, who laid out a multilingual outreach plan with door-to-door, phone-banking and multimedia elements targeted first at “deep green” neighborhoods where staff project the highest customer retention. Hale said staff expect a first-phase program sized at about 20 to 30 megawatts of local load and estimated the outreach and polling budget at roughly $1,400,000 for the coming year.

Why it matters: The endorsement commits the commission to an outreach program that precedes statutory opt-out notices and links the schedule to a final Shell contract that staff say will lock in wholesale prices. Hale told the commission the anticipated schedule calls for a signed Shell master agreement by July, a PUC confirmation in August when the commission would become financially obligated (staff estimated about $38,000,000 per year during the 4.5‑year sales period), and a program launch in October followed by the statutory opt‑out mailers.

Details and dispute: Staff presented projected bill impacts they will share with customers.…