Our Clean Energy Future (2) | Clean Power Alliance

It has been lovely to see the spring sun emerge after a winter of historic rain and snow. As news stories shift from breathless weather forecasts about abundant rain to what-ifs about potential spring snowmelt flooding, you could be excused for easily forgetting about the potential for extreme heat this upcoming summer.

But it was just seven months ago , in the midst of a climate change-fueled western heat wave that threatened to cause rolling blackouts, that Governor Newsom sent out an emergency text message to every smart phone carrying person in the state imploring them to save energy. By all accounts – including that of my then 15-year-old son who ran around the house shutting off everything he could find – those who took action to conserve helped prevent grid failure.

Clean Power Alliance has not forgotten. As soon as the temperatures cooled down, our planning efforts for the summer of 2023 and beyond heated up. And now we are urging everyone – our customers, local government partners, state regulators, and the California legislature – to join us in these preparations. Even as we are building new clean energy production facilities as fast as we can, electricity supply will still be tight for the next few years when the thermometer pops, and we’ll need everyone to pitch in.

On our end, we’ve been active in the electricity markets trying to line up additional out-of-state resources as possible – in-state resources are contracted for already – and launching new programs, reaching out to customers with high savings potential on bills, and updating our customer communication strategies to deal with the potential of “message-fatigue” if heat waves are prolonged.

Here’s how you can participate:

Through our Power Response program, CPA customers now have multiple ways they can get paid to save energy and contribute to grid stability this summer, including automatically adjusting thermostats or simply reducing energy usage in response to a text alert. Enroll in the program that is right for you at cleanpoweralliance.org/powerresponse.
Our local government partners are both large energy users and have a large communications footprint. Preparing an energy saving power-down plan for non-critical functions during heat events and communicating with constituents to conserve contributes significantly to our region’s ability to react quickly to energy emergencies.
California is a net importer of energy from other western states – as much as 30% of our electricity comes from elsewhere during days of high demand. But over the past several years, even as more of our fossil fuel plants have been shut down, state regulators have made it more difficult to secure reliable imports. In the short-term, they need to loosen up the import market while keeping their eyes on approving a number of new transmission lines from resource rich locations to population centers.
The Legislature should pass AB 1538, a bill authored by Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi and sponsored by CPA that would provide incentives for energy providers to bring on more clean resources faster than state mandates. These additional resources would both contribute to reliability and slow the rise in electricity rates by increasing the supply of resources in the market.

Everyone has a role to play in responding to the changes in our climate and in avoiding the next crisis. We ask for you to join CPA in using this spring to get prepared for summer.

Anthony Boukarim

Anthony Boukarim serves as Resource Planner, Power Supply, supporting long-term resource planning, portfolio optimization, and procurement strategy to advance CPA’s clean energy, reliability, and affordability objectives. He brings more than a decade of experience in the energy sector, spanning management consulting and advanced energy analytics, with deep expertise supporting utilities and community choice aggregators. Prior to joining CPA, Anthony spent six years at Ascend Analytics, where he led firm-wide renewable energy and storage procurement initiatives. He holds a Master of Science in Energy Resources Engineering from Stanford University and a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering from the American University of Beirut.

Kim Dunham

Kim joins Clean Power Alliance as the Senior Analyst, Rates and Tariffs. Kim is responsible for developing and maintaining CPA’s cost of service and rate models to evaluate the financial, competitiveness, and customer impacts of rate design and rate setting options. Kim held financial, strategy, and planning roles across utilities, consulting, and the energy sector, including roles with Black Hills Energy, Marathon Oil, and Noble Energy. This cross-sector background gives her a broad view of how financial modeling, regulatory strategy, and capital planning intersect to support growth, reliability, and environmental responsibility. She holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Mathematics from the University of Wyoming.

Mark Hum

Mark Hum serves as Senior Associate, Communications and Marketing at Clean Power Alliance. He is a marketing and communications strategist with a background in medtech and life sciences, where he supported initiatives spanning multiple industries across both B2B and consumer-facing brands. His work is grounded in a copywriter’s mindset, starting with audience needs and translating complex ideas into clear, compelling stories that build trust and understanding. Mark has led integrated communications across digital, social, email, web, and stakeholder channels, with an emphasis on accessibility, consistency, and measurable impact. He brings a strong appreciation for structure and narrative, ensuring that every message serves a purpose and connects with people in a meaningful way. Mark holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from California State University, Long Beach (CSULB).

Pom Saengxuto

Prapassara “Pom” Saengxuto serves as Finance and Accounting Analyst at CPA. She is a Certified Public Accountant with over 20 years of experience in accounting and finance. Throughout her career, she has worked across a wide range of industries, including public accounting, private corporations, entertainment, manufacturing, consulting and construction. This diverse background allows her to bring a well-rounded and practical perspective to every engagement. Pom is known for her strong dedication, attention to detail, and commitment to accuracy. She works effectively both independently and as part of a team, consistently supporting organizations in making informed, strategic financial decisions. Her approach combines technical expertise with a deep sense of responsibility and professionalism.