Clean Power Alliance is preparing for a busy 2024, building on the successes of last year which concluded with CPA being distinguished as the number one green power provider in the nation by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory. CPA leads all other utilities in the sale of green energy.
As demand grows for solutions to address climate change and power resiliency, this year CPA is poised to expand service to additional communities, launch new energy- and cost-saving programs for customers, and further invest in power sources and projects that will strengthen CPA’s energy portfolio and sustainability efforts.
In March, residents and businesses in the cities of Hermosa Beach, Monrovia, and Santa Paula will transition to 100% Green Power with CPA – expanding our service area to 35 communities. Each community has selected 100% Green as their preferred energy option, joining more than two-thirds of communities that CPA serves in choosing the highest levels of renewable energy. This trend reflects an ever-increasing demand for tangible approaches to meet clean air goals, contribute to climate action and improve the wellbeing of those who live and work in our Southern California communities.
Collectively, these three cities will help avoid 205 million pounds of harmful greenhouse gases each year, which is like taking more than 20,800 gasoline-powered cars off the road annually or growing 1.5 million trees for a decade.
In 2024, more than a dozen new CPA renewable energy projects are scheduled to come online. These projects will bring nearly 900 megawatts of renewable energy sources – a combination of solar and battery storage facilities and a biomass project. Increased battery storage allows CPA to balance renewable electricity generation, which is intermittent, with customer electricity demand, which fluctuates throughout the day.
These projects will provide 480 megawatts of new renewable generation and 376 megawatts of new storage capacity, with several local rooftop solar facilities supplying our Power Share program, which provides income-qualified customers in under-resourced communities with 100% renewable energy at a 20% discount on monthly bills.
This year will see the launch of several new CPA programs including the Energized Communities Program, which is designed to provide municipalities with electrification planning and project implementation assistance at no additional cost. The program is made up of two parts: Pathways to Electrification, which offers pre-selected measures to support decarbonization, and an Innovation Grant, which supports more customized solutions.
Energized Communities furthers CPA’s goal of offering energy and cost saving opportunities to our municipal customers and provides an avenue for communities to select a decarbonization project that best meets their needs. The program includes technical assistance and incentive funding.
CPA will also continue making critical investments this year in workforce development and scholarship programs, with $254,330 in funding for classroom materials for the Energy Storage & Microgrid Certification Program in partnership with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), as well as for the Voyager Scholarship program for students pursuing renewable energy careers. In the past year our support has included investing $250k to develop the next generation of green economy workers to ensure our clean energy future has the skilled workforce to move our region’s efforts ahead.
CPA is excited to advance the adoption of clean energy use in 2024 and provide our customers and communities additional opportunities to join in this effort.
Learn more about CPA programs at cleanpoweralliance.org/programs.
