Pacific Gas & Electric intends on July 28 to file with the California Public Utilities Commission its “joint proposal” to close the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant ln less than a decade and focus its energy production on greenhouse-gas-free sources.
The utility in June announced the plan developed with labor and environmental groups that would boost investment in energy efficiency, renewables, and energy storage beyond current California mandates — specifically, hitting a 55 percent renewable energy target in 2031. That includes closing Diablo Canyon reactor units 1 and 2 in 2024 and 2025, respectively, as their Nuclear Regulatory Commission licenses expire. The San Luis Obispo County facility is the sole operating nuclear power plant in the state.
The State Lands Commission last month approved a new lease to 2025 for Diablo Canyon infrastructure located on state property. While officials from the San Luis Obispo area largely supported the decision, others called for an environmental impact review of the lease extension and argued that Diablo Canyon should actually be closed earlier than planned.
PG&E has said decommissioning Diablo Canyon is expected to cost about $3.8 billion. Spent fuel from the facility will be kept on-site in pools and then in dry-cask storage until the federal government establishes a long-term repository for the nuclear waste.
Ahead of the CPUC filing, PG&E has scheduled public meetings on the joint proposal. They are scheduled for: noon to 3:45 p.m. and 4:15 to 8 p.m. June 20 at the Embassy Suites, 333 Madonna Road in San Luis Obispo; and noon to 3:45 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. to 8 p.m. July 22 at the South San Francisco Conference Center, 255 S. Airport Blvd. in South San Francisco. PG&E staff at the meetings will offer information on the proposal and take questions and comments from participants, according to a press release. The company subsequently will issue a report encompassing the questions and input taken at the meetings, which will be included in the filing with CPUC.
