Dive Brief:
- With a public campaign by the California grid operator and IOUs to conserve taking effect, California peak power demand in June was more than 200 megawatts lower than June 2013, averaging just over 34,000 megawatts and ranging from a 28,802 megawatt low to 40,424 megawatt high.
- California ISO NP15 Gen Hub Northern California on-peak prices averaged about $49.20 per megawatt-hour in June, up about $5.80 over June 2013 and SP15 Gen Hub Southern California on-peak prices were at about $49.45 per megawatt-hour, about $2.50 higher than the year before.
- The Southern California spot gas average was up in June to about $4.74 per million British Thermal Unit (MMBtu), nearly a $1 increase over June 2013, and the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) city-gate spot gas average was up to about $5.13 per MMBtu, a $1.22 year on year increase.
Dive Insight:
While Southern California's average power price rose slightly more than Northern California’s for the month, Northern California’s increase over its June 2013 level was higher because of drought-driven low hydro generation.
Total renewables, according to the California ISO, were 21-plus% of the California fuel mix, 4 percentage points higher than June 2013. Solar was 26% of those renewables, more than twice its June 2013 share.
Thermal generation, mostly natural gas, was 34% of California’s mix, down 4 percentage points from June 2013, and California imported 29% of its fuel mix, down 1 percentage point from June 2013.
As an indication that PG&E is conserving its hydro resources against summer peak needs and drawing somewhat more on the Diablo Canyon nuclear facility, hydro dropped 1 percentage point to 7% and nuclear power was up 1 percentage point from June 2013, to 8% of the mix.
