Lake County board approves MIP agreements to fund FLASH microgrid predevelopment

The Lake County Board of Supervisors on June 23 authorized the county to accept Microgrid Incentive Program grants from Pacific Gas & Electric and to enter reimbursement agreements with Trane to fund predevelopment work on the FLASH (Fire-Linked Auxiliary Supply Hydraulic) pumped-storage microgrid project at Hartley and Lucerne. The 4-0 vote allows the county to receive state-funded MIP money to pay consultants and contractors for feasibility, hydrology, engineering and environmental work but does not commit the county to build the project.

Deputy County Administrative Officer Ben Rickelman told the board the MIP program is administered by the California Public Utilities Commission and is intended to de-risk community microgrid projects by funding predevelopment steps. Trane'affiliated project lead Michael Day and technical subcontractors described the FLASH concept: two large pressurized tanks and turbines that generate electricity from water released downhill and recharge when solar power pumps the water back to the upper reservoir. The proposal includes two sites near Lakeport and could provide 24-hour backup power for critical facilities if fully permitted and constructed.

Rickelman said the MIP agreements include milestone reimbursements and that Regional County Representatives of California offered a $200,000 0% loan so the county would not be cash short during predevelopment. The agreements would fund hydrology studies, geotechnical work, environmental review and grid-interconnection analysis. Day emphasized the hydrology study is essential both to demonstrate feasibility and to satisfy a key federal test (the Bison Peak framework) that could limit Federal Energy Regulatory Commission jurisdiction.

Several supervisors and public speakers pressed for clear community protections, including workforce development commitments and clarifying that the county would have choices later about ownership, leasing, or sale. Labor representatives told the board they support a community workforce development agreement to prioritize local apprentices and union labor. Rickelman and Day said ownership and revenue-sharing options would be addressed only after feasibility and permitting; Day said if the county owned the facilities and sold output, earlier estimates projected potential net revenue for the county but cautioned those estimates are preliminary.

The board approved two motions: one to accept the MIP agreements with PG&E and authorize the chair to sign, and a second to approve the reimbursement services agreements with Trane and authorize the chair to sign them. Both motions carried 4-0. Directors and presenters said predevelopment is expected to take roughly two years; construction (if pursued) would be a separate future decision and would require additional approvals, permits and funding.