Distributed generation resources should be viewed as a near-term solution to meet Southern California's energy requirements in light of the prolonged or permanent shutdown of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, a new briefing paper by the Rocky Mountain Institute argues.

The authors of the RMI paper, "Reinventing Fire in Southern California: Distributed Resources and the San Onofre Outage," warn that some of the strategies that have been relied upon to date to provide backup power in SONGS' absence may not continue to be available -- and that implementing a portfolio of distributed-generation solutions should be given serious consideration alongside conventional power options.

"Distributed and demand-side resources -- including energy efficiency, demand response, and solar photovoltaics -- offer a portfolio of solutions to help fill the near-term supply gap, while also advancing California's long-term goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and supporting local economic development and job creation," the paper notes.

The 2,200-MW SONGS has been off line since January after a leak was detected and plant operators found abnormal wear in steam-generator tubes.

To make up for the energy shortfall last summer, the state relied on two recommissioned units at the Huntington Beach power plant; transmission upgrades (including the newly energized Sunrise Powerlink); "Flex Alerts"; and various demand-response programs. California ISO's plan for next summer without SONGS looks to voltage support, transmission work and the arrival of new natural gas-fired generation. (The Huntington Beach units will no longer operate, as their pollution credits will be transferred to the Walnut Creek Energy Center.)

"So much of the conversation thus far has been about transmission upgrades and natural gas-fired generation," said Mathias Bell, a consultant with RMI's electricity practice and one of the authors of the report. "That's really where the focus has been."

The paper assesses the size of various distributed resources in Southern California and compares their cost to the levelized electricity cost of a new natural gas combined-cycle power plant, which rings in at approximately 7.5 cents/kWh.

Solar PV could fully replace the power output of SONGS, for example, but at greater than 100 percent of the cost of energy from a new gas-fired power plant, according to the briefing.

Energy efficiency, meanwhile, could replace about half the output of SONGS in less than a year given rapid deployment, at a cost that is at or below the cost of new gas-fired generation.

The paper offers a number of recommendations to facilitate higher levels of distributed energy resources in the southern part of the state, including the creation of capacity markets that allow DG to compete fairly with supply-side power plants; providing "bonus" incentives to distributed resources based on the value they deliver to the grid (with higher value placed on those that supply energy in areas where it is most needed); and allowing for higher penetration of renewables before requiring an interconnection study.

"Replacing the lost capacity from San Onofre is an immediate need, not a scenario that lends itself to years of workshops, feasibility studies, and hearings," the briefing concludes. "Stakeholders will need to move rapidly to put policies into place."

- Leora Broydo Vestel

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