New 35 MW PPA for Calpine’s Geysers geothermal plants

The cooling tower for the West Ford Flat power plant, Geysers/ California (source: commons/ wikimedia, Rtracey)

Local power utility Peninsula Clean Energy has signed a 35 MW Power Purchase Agreement with Calpine Corporation through The Geysers, a 725-MW complex located 70 miles north of San Francisco. The power purchase agreement is Peninsula Clean Energy’s first to involve geothermal. The 35 MW are enough to power 60,000 households annually in San Mateo County.

“The geothermal power from The Geysers is another reliable tool to reduce heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions and slow climate change,” Peninsula Clean Energy CEO Jan Pepper said. “This helps us further evolve our energy mix to meet growing demand for affordable 24/7 renewable power.”

The 15 geothermal power plants at The Geysers stretch across 45 square miles in Sonoma and Lake Counties and are responsible for providing nearly one-tenth of the renewable power produced annually in California.

“Calpine and The Geysers are proud to support Peninsula Clean Energy in its goal of providing clean, renewable and reliable energy to customers across San Mateo County and the city of Los Banos,” said Gevan Reeves, Calpine’s Vice President of Origination. “Geothermal energy from The Geysers is available every hour of every day, supporting Peninsula Clean Energy’s efforts to deliver a reliable power portfolio sourced from 100 percent renewable energy. It also supports hundreds of hardworking employees committed to powering communities across California with reliable geothermal energy.”

The geothermal power from The Geysers will bring Peninsula Clean Energy another step toward the organization’s ultimate goal of providing 24/7 renewable power to its customers. Peninsula Clean Energy this year for the first time began providing 100 percent carbon-free power to all of its nearly 300,000 customers. At least half of that power this year stems from renewable power, with the remainder coming from large hydropower and other carbon-free generation.

About Peninsula Clean Energy

Peninsula Clean Energy is a Community Choice Aggregation agency. It is the official electricity provider for San Mateo County and, beginning in 2022, for the City of Los Banos. Founded in 2016 with a mission to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the county, the agency serves 295,000 customers by providing more than 3,500 gigawatt hours annually of electricity that is 100 percent carbon-free and at lower cost than PG&E. As a community-led, not-for-profit agency, Peninsula Clean Energy makes significant investments in its communities to expand access to sustainable and affordable energy solutions. Peninsula Clean Energy is on track to deliver electricity that is 100 percent renewable by 2025. The agency has earned investment grade credit ratings from Moody’s and Fitch.

Source: Peninsula Clean Energy