CalChoice staff met virtually on Wednesday, January 27 with partner Direct Energy to receive an update on California’s power market. 

“While Direct Energy handles a variety of technical processes for our members, it’s important for us to understand the work they do behind the scenes,” said CalChoice Executive Director Jason Caudle. “Direct Energy’s regular power market updates are an excellent opportunity for us to hear directly from the experts.”

The team provided staff a general load forecasting overview, noting that 2020 was an overall challenging year for load forecasting due to coronavirus and several extreme heat events.   

Following the load forecasting overview, Direct Energy provided a weather update and the potential impact on electricity market conditions. The update included a wholesale gas and power market update.

Direct Energy concluded with a regulatory and legislative update focusing on Power Charge Indifference Adjustment (PCIA), IRP procurement  and grid resiliency. In their legislative update, the team noted that legislation is currently focused primarily on COVID-19 matters. Energy-related legislative items of interest include Natural Gas Bans (AB 33 and others), New DR Programs (SB 204), Community Resilience Grants (SB 99) and Building Decarbonization (SB 30 and others).  

Until coronavirus-related restrictions are lifted, CalChoice will continue to coordinate virtual meetings. Visit californiachoiceenergyauthority.com for more information about CalChoice.