USA, California:

Carlsbad Gas Plant Aces Out Renewable Option (U-T San Diego)

Imperial Irrigation District officials offered geothermal, say it was turned away

Last month, California Public Utilities Commission President Michael Picker overruled a decision from one of his agency’s judges and said a new gas-fired power plant should be constructed on the beach in Carlsbad.

Picker’s decision was announced three weeks after one of his aides met privately with NRG Energy, the New Jersey firm behind the $2.6 billion project.

In announcing his decision, Picker said the plant is needed to replace the Encina Power Station that is scheduled to be removed from service as soon as 2018 and to make up for the loss of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, which closed prematurely in 2012 after a radiation leak.

While the greenhouse gas-emitting Carlsbad Energy Center is scheduled to be reconsidered at a commission hearing on Thursday, years-long efforts to promote development of geothermal power in Imperial County have not received as much support from state policymakers.

The Imperial Irrigation District board last week voted unanimously to hire lawyers to pursue civil action against the utilities commission and the California Independent System Operator, the nonprofit manager of most power transmission.

“If they had a level playing field, we could build out 1,400 megawatts and then some of the untapped, known geothermal resources in and around the Salton Sea,” district General Manager Kevin Kelley said.

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