US EditionComplaint: 2 California Utilities Routinely Fail to Meet Deadlines to Connect Solar Panels to Grid
California's largest utilities miss solar panel connection deadlines 43% to 73% of the time, with regulators reviewing but not yet imposing penalties, advocates say.
- In recent years, Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison have routinely missed interconnection deadlines, but the California Public Utilities Commission has not reprimanded them.
- The commission's 2020 decision clarified timelines for design, construction and installation but declined to specify financial penalties and rejected a working-group recommendation linking penalties to meeting timelines on 95% of projects.
- Data in the filing reveal specific company performance: PG&E met timelines 49% of the time, Edison 43%, while PG&E’s median acknowledgment time was 20 days versus the 10-business-day rule and a longest case of 245 days.
- Solar panel owners face financial delays because the California Solar & Storage Association filed a complaint urging accountability, while three environmental groups sued and the California Supreme Court ruled last month.
- Regulators are formally reviewing the complaint and the interconnection process, with the California Public Utilities Commission considering penalties if timeline certainty does not improve amid permitting and technology delays.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Regulators know Edison, PG&E are slow to hook up solar. Why no penalties?
By Malena Carollo | CalMatters The state’s two largest utilities routinely drag their feet connecting solar panels to the electric grid, missing state-mandated deadlines as much as 73% of the time, according to a complaint filed to regulators by solar advocates. The complaint filed by a solar energy advocacy group urges the California Public Utilities Commission to hold utilities accountable when they fail to meet such deadlines. The commission …
Associated Press News
Complaint: 2 California utilities routinely fail to meet deadlines to connect solar panels to grid
The state’s two largest utilities routinely drag their feet connecting solar panels to the electric grid, missing state-mandated deadlines as much as 73% of the time, according to a complaint filed to regulators by solar advocates.
Cal Matters
Regulators know PG&E, Edison are slow to hook up solar. Why are there no penalties?
PG&E and Southern California Edison are routinely late to hook up new solar panels, squeezing owners financially. Will they be punished?
Regulators Know PG&E, Edison Are Slow to Hook up Solar. Why Are There No Penalties?
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. The state’s two largest utilities routinely drag their feet connecting solar panels to the electric grid, missing state-mandated deadlines as much as 73% of the time, according to a complaint filed to regulators by solar advocates. The complaint filed by a solar energy advocacy group urges the California Public Utilities Commission to hold utilities accountable whe…
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