Project will either move forward or be dropped over the next three years depending on feasibility, according to Councilmember David Cohen
In a major shake-up of the South Bay’s energy landscape, the San Jose City Council on Tuesday officially approved the creation of a city-run electric utility in response to Pacific Gas & Electric’s questionable track record and demand for more power supply — a decision that could become one of its most consequential this year.
But with potentially tens to hundreds of millions of dollars on the line, the plan is getting major pushback from PG&E and the regional electrical workers’ union IBEW 1245, which argue that the city doesn’t have the required skillset or capital to get a utility up and running.“This is potential competition for PG&E in new installations,” Cohen said in an interview. “I assume they don’t want competition. The workers like working for PG&E. They want PG&E to be the sole provider.
“I still believe we would benefit from having an alternative for new, large developments,” said Cohen. “But we would have to make sure, before we move any further, that that would be cheaper for those customers.” On Tuesday, union members also expressed concerns over jobs being threatened by the utility, though councilmembers promised to include them in decisions going forward.
As the city shifts towards more renewable energy systems, like installing electrical vehicle chargers, there’s a need to increase power capacity. State estimates expect the doubling of electricity usage by 2045 or 2050, said city officials.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Downtown San Jose, Oakland, San Francisco office vacancies hit sky-high levelsThe Bay Area’s three largest downtown districts suffered with sky-high levels of empty offices in the third quarter of 2023,
Read more »
San Jose: Two children die, one injured after falling into swimming pool at residential daycareTwo of the children were pronounced dead at a hospital, police said. The third child was expected to survive.
Read more »
2 kids drown in San Jose pool at residential daycareTwo children drowned, and a third was hospitalized after falling into a pool at a San Jose daycare center based in a home, police said Monday.
Read more »
2 children drown, 1 hospitalized after falling into San Jose day care pool, police sayTwo children have died after drowning at a San Jose residential day care Monday, police said.
Read more »
San Jose declares homelessness crisis; Mayor seeks to fast-track interim shelter constructionSan Jose leaders on Monday officially declared homelessness in the city a crisis in order to quickly move forward with the processes of shifting people from encampments into interim housing.
Read more »
2 children drown in pool at South San Jose home daycareTwo children drowned and one child was rescued after falling into a pool at a residential daycare in South San Jose Monday morning.
Read more »