Copyright Santa Rosa Press Democrat

Lake County’s decade-long consideration of an alternative to Pacific Gas & Electric as the supplier of power to residents and business has been pushed back again. Both the Board of Supervisors and Lakeport City Council on Tuesday declined to move forward with joining Sonoma Clean Power. The supervisors failed to secure support to vote on approving the partnership during their morning meeting. And Lakeport’s council members, looking to the county’s move, also opted for more study. That followed the Clearlake City Council’s divided vote Oct. 2 against joining. The offer required all three to join together. Because of the lead time required by the California Public Utilities Commission for implementing a community choice aggregation power provider in an area, Sonoma Clean Power had been hoping to review Lake County decisions at its November board meeting, allowing service to start in May 2027. The proposal would have provided Lake County residents with an alternative to PG&E’s power generation sources while delivered on the utility’s transmission and distribution infrastructure. Supporters emphasized the potential for lower rates and local representation on Sonoma Clean Power’s board. “We cannot continue being held hostage by PG&E’s de facto monopoly and it being our only option for power generation,” said Arnaud Hubert, a Kelseyville resident who sits on the county’s Big Valley Advisory Council. “We generate power right here in this county. So let’s close the loop.” The Geysers, the world’s largest geothermal field, spans Sonoma and Lake counties. Dozens of power plans there produce 725 megawatts of electricity. Sonoma Clean Power is backing a geothermal opportunity zone, or GeoZone, to add up to 600 megawatts via new technologies that don’t require massive quantities of treated wastewater now pumped to the plants from Santa Rosa and cities around Clear Lake. Six-hundred megawatts ins enough energy to power approximately 450,000 homes. Supervisor Jessica Pyska said it was time to take action on the power agency’s proposal. “This is the deal that we’ve been working on for a really long time. I think we just need to make this decision and move forward,” Pyska said. However, the supervisors ultimately directed staff to explore other options for community choice aggregation, a type of alternative provider allowed under state law, and conduct more detailed cost-benefit analyses rather than committing to Sonoma Clean Power. “I want to expand the conversation and see what else is available, because what I see gives me pause and hesitation…,” said Supervisor Bruno Sabatier. By evening, the Lakeport City Council faced a changed political landscape. “Given the … Board of Supervisors’ action today not to move forward, there really is no offer currently from Sonoma Clean Power,” City Manager Kevin Ingram told the council. Geof Syphers, Sonoma Clean Power’s CEO, expressed frustration during the council meeting. “After 10 years of requests from Lake County, starting in 2015, and three rounds of Lake County requests to us for service, I am getting a little confused about Lake County’s genuine interest,” Syphers said. “So I’ll be candid tonight. We spent — between the two feasibility studies we’ve done — almost $90,000 at the expense of ratepayers in Sonoma and Mendocino counties.” Syphers also addressed tribal outreach concerns that had been raised by some supervisors and council members in Clearlake and Lakeport. “Back in April this year, our tribal liaison reminded me that we had asked the county and the chair of the supervisors to introduce us to local tribes to inform the county’s vote, and we ended up getting no response to that request,” Syphers said. Some Lakeport council members expressed disappointment at the missed opportunity. “I was really excited to give our residents another option besides PG&E. We hear all the time about how it’s killing small businesses…. I wish we were a larger city where we could just go at it ourself and not need the county support,” said Mayor Pro Tem Brandon Disney. Sonoma Clean Power board Chairman Brian Barnacle told the Journal on Wednesday the agency had been looking forward to “helping Lake County residents, businesses, and tribes save money and shape their energy future. But after more than 10 years of exploration, the Lake County supervisors were not ready to commit. Tuesday’s outcome is disappointing, but the resolution is welcomed.” Jeff Quackenbush joined North Bay Business Journal in May 1999. He covers primarily wine, construction and real estate. Reach him at jeff@nbbj.news or 707-521-4256.