Moreno Valley Utility plan highlights infrastructure buildout and says proposed rates could be lower than SCE
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Summary
Electric utility division manager Jason Nikolai presented MVU's business plan promising reliability, planned battery storage and substations, customer programs and estimated savings of $7–9 million; staff said proposed rates could be about 26% lower than Southern California Edison if approved. Council asked about developer contributions and cybersecurity.
Jason Nikolai, Moreno Valley electric utility division manager, presented the Moreno Valley Utility (MVU) business plan at the Dec. 9 study session, laying out capital projects, software and staffing needed to support city growth and maintain reliability.
"Our business plan is more than our document. It's our road map for reliability, affordability, and resilience in a rapidly shifting energy landscape," Nikolai said. He told the council that recent competitive procurements selected CityLight and Power for engineering and operational support and ESE Partners for customer service support and that the transitions are expected to produce $7 million to $9 million in savings.
Nikolai said a cost‑of‑service study related to rate proposals coming to council next week shows the proposed MVU rates would be approximately 26% lower than Southern California Edison if approved. Planned distribution projects include battery energy storage at the Mobile substation by June 2027, a World Logistics Center substation by 2030, new substations in Edgemont and the World Logistics Center area, line extensions on the northeast side and a microgrid and EV charging infrastructure at the City Hall campus.
The presentation described software deployments (distribution modeling/ETAP, SCADA, outage management and an asset/work‑order system) intended to improve operations and compliance with state standards (referenced GO 165 and GO 174 during the presentation). Nikolai said MVU tracks reliability metrics used industry‑wide and intends to exceed regional benchmarks as assets age and demand grows.
Council members asked whether developers would be asked to fund upgrades; Nikolai replied that developers fund interconnection installations required for new developments while larger upstream upgrades are handled through MVU’s capital improvement plan. When asked whether MVU contracts with energy producers are publicly available, Nikolai said they are and that reports are provided to the utility commission.
Public commenters praised the plan for its prospects for local revenue. Seth Cox raised cybersecurity concerns; Nikolai said cybersecurity is incorporated into MVU’s data and asset management plans and is mentioned in the master plan. The study session ended with staff agreeing to continue providing details to the utility commission and council as the rate and capital items move through formal review.
