SoCalGas Facilities Begin Switch to 100% Renewable Power Under Green Rate Program

Utility now using grid power that is 100% renewable at eligible facilities to meet 80% of those facilities' electricity demand, underscoring its commitment to be a leader in the transition to a decarbonized energy system

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Southern California Gas Company

Sep 08, 2021, 16:08 ET

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) today announced it has begun purchasing renewable electricity under Southern California Edison's (SCE) Green Rate Program everywhere the gas utility is eligible for service by SCE. Including this new arrangement, SoCalGas estimates that it will purchase nearly 53.7 million kilowatt hours of power from renewable sources each year, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 38,000 metric tons annually, the equivalent of taking more than 8,000 gasoline-powered cars off the road each year.

This electricity is instrumental in powering a gas infrastructure that serves SoCalGas's 22 million customers today and can distribute cleaner fuels in the future. A total of 69 operating facilities, representing more than 80% of all electricity demand at these facilities, will now use renewable power from the electrical grid. This purchase places SoCalGas among the largest SCE renewable energy customers. SoCalGas has made plans to enroll its remaining eligible facilities and buildings in a similar renewable power program by the end of the year.

"Increasing our usage of 100% renewable grid power at our operating facilities is part of SoCalGas's goal to achieve net zero emissions in our operations and delivery of energy by 2045," said Jawaad Malik, SoCalGas vice president of strategy and sustainability. "A clean energy future will require the continued integration of the electric and gas grids to achieve the clean, reliable, and affordable power that California demands."

"Our Green Rate Program was designed for climate leader customers like SoCalGas, who want to reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with electricity use while contributing to a cleaner, healthier environment," said Mike Marelli, vice president of SCE's Business Customer Division. "Working together with SoCalGas in this leadership role will help contribute to a clean and affordable energy future for all."

"SoCalGas switching their eligible facilities to 100% renewable grid energy is a commendable action that will help reduce the state greenhouse gas emissions, and sets an example for companies across the nation who will play a vital role in meeting our ambitious climate goals," said Assemblymember Chris Holden, Chair of the Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee.

The purchase of 100% renewable electricity under SCE's Green Rate Program includes five Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) programs that SoCalGas subscribes to within the SCE territory.

As part of its climate commitment released in March 2021, SoCalGas announced a goal to achieve net zero energy for its newly constructed buildings and major renovations of buildings over 10,000 square feet by 2025 and 100% of its buildings by 2035.

In addition, SoCalGas is in the process of replacing 50% of its over-the-road fleet with electric, hybrid, renewable natural gas, and fuel electric vehicles by 2025. SoCalGas's goal is to replace 100% of its over-the-road fleet with zero emissions over-the-road fleet by 2035. In support of this goal, SoCalGas submitted Charge Ready Transport (CRT) applications with SCE to install electric vehicle charging infrastructures at its Energy Resource Center in Downey and its Compton and Pico Rivera facilities; combined these projects are estimated to net more than 100 new charging stations.

For more information on the work SoCalGas is doing to advance the use of renewable gases, click here.

About SoCalGas
Headquartered in Los Angeles, SoCalGas® is the largest gas distribution utility in the United States. SoCalGas delivers affordable, reliable, and increasingly renewable gas service to 21.8 million consumers across 24,000 square miles of Central and Southern California. Gas delivered through the company's pipelines will continue to play a key role in California's clean energy transition—providing electric grid reliability and supporting wind and solar energy deployment.

SoCalGas' mission is to build the cleanest, safest and most innovative energy company in America. In support of that mission, SoCalGas is committed to the goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in its operations and delivery of energy by 2045 and to replacing 20 percent of its traditional natural gas supply to core customers with renewable natural gas (RNG) by 2030. Renewable natural gas is made from waste created by dairy farms, landfills, and wastewater treatment plants. SoCalGas is also committed to investing in its gas delivery infrastructure while keeping bills affordable for customers. SoCalGas is a subsidiary of Sempra (NYSE: SRE), an energy services holding company based in San Diego. For more information visit socalgas.com/newsroom or connect with SoCalGas on Twitter (@SoCalGas), Instagram (@SoCalGas) and Facebook.

This press release contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions with respect to the future, involve risks and uncertainties, and are not guarantees. Future results may differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements represent our estimates and assumptions only as of the date of this press release. We assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other factors. In this press release, forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "projects," "forecasts," "should," "could," "would," "will," "confident," "may," "can," "potential," "possible," "proposed," "in process," "under construction," "in development," "target," "outlook," "maintain," "continue," "goal," "aim," "commit," or similar expressions, or when we discuss our guidance, priorities, strategy, goals, vision, mission, opportunities, projections, intentions or expectations. Factors, among others, that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those described in any forward-looking statements include risks and uncertainties relating to: decisions, investigations, regulations, issuances or revocations of permits and other authorizations, renewals of franchises, and other actions by (i) the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), U.S. Department of Energy, and other regulatory and governmental bodies and (ii) states, counties, cities and other jurisdictions in the U.S. in which we do business; the success of business development efforts and construction projects, including risks in (i) completing construction projects or other transactions on schedule and budget, (ii) the ability to realize anticipated benefits from any of these efforts if completed, and (iii) obtaining the consent of partners or other third parties; the resolution of civil and criminal litigation, regulatory inquiries, investigations and proceedings, and arbitrations, including, among others, those related to the natural gas leak at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility; actions by credit rating agencies to downgrade our credit ratings or to place those ratings on negative outlook and our ability to borrow on favorable terms and meet our substantial debt service obligations; actions to reduce or eliminate reliance on natural gas, including any deterioration of or increased uncertainty in the political or regulatory environment for local natural gas distribution companies operating in California; weather, natural disasters, pandemics, accidents, equipment failures, explosions, acts of terrorism, information system outages or other events that disrupt our operations, damage our facilities and systems, cause the release of harmful materials, cause fires or subject us to liability for property damage or personal injuries, fines and penalties, some of which may not be covered by insurance, may be disputed by insurers or may otherwise not be recoverable through regulatory mechanisms or may impact our ability to obtain satisfactory levels of affordable insurance; the availability of natural gas and natural gas storage capacity, including disruptions caused by limitations on the withdrawal of natural gas from storage facilities; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on capital projects, regulatory approvals and the execution of our operations; cybersecurity threats to the storage and pipeline infrastructure, information and systems used to operate our businesses, and confidentiality of our proprietary information and personal information of our customers and employees, including ransomware attacks on our systems and the systems of third-party vendors and other parties with which we conduct business; volatility in inflation and interest rates and commodity prices and our ability to effectively hedge these risks; changes in tax and trade policies, laws and regulations, including tariffs and revisions to international trade agreements that may increase our costs, reduce our competitiveness, or impair our ability to resolve trade disputes; and other uncertainties, some of which may be difficult to predict and are beyond our control. These risks and uncertainties are further discussed in the reports that the company has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These reports are available through the EDGAR system free-of-charge on the SEC's website, www.sec.gov, and on Sempra's website, www.sempra.com. Investors should not rely unduly on any forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Southern California Gas Company