California's utilities want to cut benefits to solar customers

[Auggie]

San Francisco Chronicle / August 4, 2015

Once a novelty, rooftop solar power has spread so quickly in California that PG&E and the state’s other utility companies see it as a threat to their future finances.

So the utilities are pushing back.

PG&E, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas & Electric Co. have all proposed cutting one of California’s key financial incentives for solar homeowners, making photovoltaic panels less attractive as a result.

They also want to impose new monthly fees that would hit solar customers alone. If approved by the California Public Utilities Commission, the changes would apply to new PG&E solar customers starting in July 2017 — and would cut the amount that they save on utility bills by roughly $20 per month. People who already have panels would keep their old incentives for 20 years after their arrays were installed.

MORE: http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/State-s-utilities-want-to-cut-benefits-to-solar-6425128.php?cmpid=gsa-sfgate-result

Really, you greedy capitalists? REALLY?

[elleng]

1. REALLY!

Fools that they are, not taking advantage of their positions to PROMOTE and invest in NEW tech.

[scscholar]

2. The wealthy people with solar...

should pay their fair share. It is the poor that are unfairly not able to take advantage of solar because of the huge prices.

[yeoman6987]

5. True. I live in a moderate wealthy neighborhood

And a lot have put up solar panels. I inquired about them from a neighbor and it cost 30K initial costs but got back around 18K in tax subsidies. That is expensive but if I had known I would have put up solar panels instead of renovating the kitchen for 25k with no tax bennies. Oh well life lessons. The kitchen was completed last week. I talked to the neighbor a month ago but the kitchen was already under construction. Their electric bill is so cheap compared to mine. Ugh!

[still_one]

7. If you shop around you can get a 4500 KW system for about 8K with the tax subsidies. Solar City,

Elon Musks interest, is NOT the cheapest way to go solar. There are plenty of companies out their that are flexible.

They also offer lease programs for solar, which don't save as much as a purchase, but it still saves considerably from PG&E

PGE is upset because they are working to figure out a way to pay for the gas explosion in San Bruno, that devastated a neighborhood, and the only way to keep managements high salaries is to pass the cost on to the customer

[still_one]

6. Do you even know what you are talking about? A lot of folks are NOT "rich" who have solar. There

Last edited Wed Aug 5, 2015, 03:03 PM - Edit history (1)

are also programs in California to assist and help those less fortunate.

Also, not all folks just buy solar, they have programs where they lease it also.

Solar is one step to help to combat green house gasses. Global Warming IS A REAL PROBLEM. Have you seen the fires lately in our state? They are made worse by the drought we are having, due to global warming.

I assume you resent folks who buy hybrid cars or all electric cars, because "they are wealthy"

Do you even live in California?

By the way, adding a surcharge to solar customers is NOT going to decrease other users. If you have followed the history of PGE, rates do not go down

[djean111]

3. ALEC is doing just what the Kochs want.

And power companies will fight solar to the bitter bitter end, rather than re-group or retool or start thinking about scaling down profits.
What amazes me is that they probably all employ MBAs who evidently never tell them jack shit except how to ensure quarterly profits forever. Which is not possible. My hope that sooner, rather than later, better storage and cheaper and more efficient solar panels will make their huge grids obsolete.

[still_one]

4. WHAT!!! The PUC or our legislature better block this garbage.

[mackerel]

9. The PUC is mostly appointmented conservative assholes who really aren't too concerned

with Californians.

[still_one]

10. I am not sure how they can justify charging solar customers more. They are NOT using PGE energy.

They are in effect their own energy company during the daylight hours.

If I grow vegetables in my back yard, am I going to be surcharged because I am eating the vegetables I grow if I don't buy them from corporate farmers?

Credits are given by the feds and state as incentives, and I could understand where they could reduce or eliminate that, but to surcharge people for producing their own energy, that is a major over reach.

It is like some of the republicans have proposed if you drive a hybrid or electric car you should pay more because you don't use as much gasoline. There argument is that they receive highway funds from gasoline taxes.

However, you can't have it both ways. Do they want clean energy, and energy independence or just a quick buck so PGE can keep their corporate bosses happy to the life style they are accustomed to?


GRRRRRRRRRRRR

[LeftyMom]

11. The PUC is a joke.

I swear, their office is where all the state worker stereotypes come from. It's a warren of doddering senior citizens moving at a snail's pace working on paper files. Calling it Byzantine would be unfair to a civilization that got shit done.

[still_one]

13. I agree. For years we have been told to use energy wisely, not waste it, and now they want to

penalize those that do.

Go Giants!!!!!!! I like you Avatar

[msongs]

8. dear edison, to prop up your obsolete model pls cut salaries of the top management and shareholder

dividends. spitting into the wind is a management choice

[LeftyMom]

12. The rest of you really need to switch to municipal utilities.

We get cheaper, more reliable service and our utility actively promotes more solar. For profit companies with a monopoly are bull. .

[mackerel]

14. Not sure I follow?

[LeftyMom]

15. The Municipal Utility Districts (Sacramento, East Bay) that border PG&E territory

are cheaper and better. I deal with SMUD for my electric and Pacific Gas and Explosions for my gas, and the difference in service is like night and day. We get a ton of perks like free shade trees and discounted CFL lights too. Which reminds me, I need to go over to their yard this week to get a truckload of free mulch from their tree trimmers.

I'm baffled why the rest of the state doesn't follow suit.