California tells utilities to speed up new grid connections, upgrades

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has approved a decision to set new energization targets and timelines for the three large electric investor-owned utilities (IOUs) to complete steps in the energization process that they control.

Under Senate Bill (SB) 410 and Assembly Bill (AB) 50, the decision aims to accelerate the electrical energization process for customers who request new or upgraded electrical service through new accountability standards for the three large electric IOUs (Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas & Electric) and more transparency for customers.

The decision implements the Powering Up Californians Act, SB 410 and AB 50, which direct the CPUC to define “reasonable” energization times for new or upgraded electrical loads and establish a process for reporting delays.

The decision is meant to expedite the process of connecting homes and businesses, electric vehicle chargers, and other loads to the electric grid. CPUC based the decision on the utilities’ historic energization data in the last five years and party comments submitted in a process that was streamlined to meet a September 30, 2024 statutory deadline.

The targets and timelines were triggered by a customer energization request, CPUC said, and the process supports early engagement between customers and the utilities to coordinate project development schedules.

What’s in the proposal?

CPUC’s decision includes the following elements:

• New energization targets: If targets are met by the large three electric IOUs, maximum timelines for grid connections could be reduced up to 49% compared to current operations, CPUC said.
• Quicker upgrades for residential services: Streamlined energization targets are meant to expedite electrical service upgrades that do not require upgrades to the electric grid, including those needed for residential electric vehicle chargers
• Increased utility accountability: A framework with eight steps to track energization activities will help the CPUC hold utilities accountable for the steps they control, the Commission said.
• New transparency measures: New monitoring and reporting requirements would apply to all
  steps, including those controlled by customers or third parties.
• New maximum timelines for necessary grid capacity upgrades: For customer energization requests that require upgrades to increase the capacity of the distribution system, new timelines would set maximum timelines for utilities to plan for and begin execution of upgrade projects. CPUC will continue to evaluate the utilities’ capacity upgrade process in Phase 2 of the proceeding to further define these timelines.

New targets and timelines

The decision sets the following targets and timelines for energization requests, starting from the date a
customer requests energization:

For transparency, and to track progress, the decision also requires accountability measures from the utilities. Utilities will be required to submit biannual reports to CPUC detailing:

• The average time between receiving an application for energization and the completion of the request, including steps that are dependent on actions by third parties;
• Reasons for any energization projects that exceed the prescribed targets;
• An analysis of constraints and obstacles impacting energization, including issues related to funding, staffing, and equipment availability

Additionally, the utilities will create customer engagement plans, which are meant to improve customer understanding of the energization process, and provide updates to customers with projects moving forward in the energization process.

CPUC said it anticipates launching Phase 2 of the proceeding after the decision to explore improvements to the targets and timelines and resolve other issues impacting energization.