Local residents now have alternative to SDG&E

Rick Monroe

Special to the Village News

Local residents will soon have an alternative to San Diego Gas & Electric. San Diego Community Power, a not-for-profit public agency that has been operating for three years in parts of the county, is expanding its service area to unincorporated areas. Homeowners and commercial properties interested can sign up not for it to begin in April.

"Think of it like a grocery store that might offer only Safeway Select cheese," explained Jen Lebron, director of public affairs for SDCP. "Now you will be able to get Kraft or Velveeta. That's us."

She shared figures showing a slight monthly savings on basic electricity charges from SDG&E. The savings would be greater, she said, but in January directors authorized a rate increase to achieve a better credit rating through additional reserves.

The focus of SDCP, she said, is to focus on what families need and want most when it comes to their energy. The new provider of electricity intends to bring cleaner energy at competitive rates.

"We put our communities first, helping you take a giant step toward a more sustainable energy future," she added.

The company has provided an alternative in the cities of Encinitas, Chula Vista, La Mesa and San Diego. The city of National City and the unincorporated areas have been added effective in April.

SDCP also offers a Power 100 option – at a slightly higher rate than SDG&E – that offers electricity produced carbon-free.

Residential or commercial accounts of SDG&E that switch to SDCP will still receive their bills from SDG&E with the SDCP charges identified.

SDCP has a million customers and is the second largest Community Choice Aggregation in the state. Peninsula Clean Energy in Los Angeles is larger. There are currently 25 CCAs operating in over 200 communities around California

CCAs were created to advocate for ratepayers by providing choice for the first time and shifting control of local energy decisions from profit-driven, investor-owned utilities into the hands of residents and businesses. Competition supports increased transparency, more customer programs, and a better overall customer experience, SDCP states.

The agency offers tiered programs that provide cleaner energy at competitive rates, helping us reach climate action goals and supporting healthier communities today and for the future.

As a locally run not-for-profit energy provider, SDCP will never be taxpayer funded and will support economic vitality by providing cleaner energy at competitive rates and funding local renewable energy projects.

SDCP gets its electricity from suppliers that have gone through a rigorous qualification and selection process. These suppliers, much like SDG&E, get their electricity from a variety of generation sources. At a minimum, SDCP's default PowerOn option includes 50% renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and hydroelectricity.

The optional Power100 provides electricity from 100% renewable sources such as wind and solar.

All CCAs are required to meet the same reliability standards as investor-owned utilities such as SDG&E.

State law prevents investor-owned utilities like SDG&E from profiting on retail electric generation, so the benefits of cleaner and competitively priced power from SDCP comes at no cost to SDG&E or local jobs. In fact, SDG&E will continue to maintain the grid, repair power lines, and provide its shared customers with one consolidated utility bill with SDCP electric generation charges and SDG&E electric delivery charges. The only change customers will see is new options for cleaner energy at competitive rates.

All SDCP customers remain SDG&E customers. SDG&E provides electric delivery, meter reading and billing services for SDCP customers. SDG&E will continue to send you just one electric bill, which will now include SDCP charges for electric generation service.

For more information, visit https://sdcommunitypower.org/.